Representation of the virtual currency Bitcoin can be seen on a motherboard in this image, taken on April 24, 2020.
Given Ruvic | Reuters
Bitcoin hit a record high of $ 60,000 on Saturday morning and continued its rally as major corporations and financial institutions take over cryptocurrencies.
Bitcoin, the world’s largest cryptocurrency, was at $ 60,415.34 as of 7:25 AM ET, according to Coinbase, recovering from a dip in late February that followed an earlier record that month.
According to Coinbase, the digital currency is up 963% in the last 12 months. Its value surpassed $ 1 trillion for the second time this year last week.
Bitcoin’s rally is driven in part by increased adoption by larger institutional investors and companies and speculative demand. Tesla has purchased $ 1.5 billion worth of bitcoin and plans to accept the digital coin as payment for its products, a decision that sparked more general interest.
Mastercard also said it will open its network to a number of digital currencies. And PayPal and BNY Mellon have taken some steps in space.
Bitcoin believers argue that the current rally is fueled by institutional investor demand and is unlike previous rallies, such as when bitcoin skyrocketed to nearly $ 20,000 in late 2017, before losing about 80% of its value the following year.
Others argue that bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies have no intrinsic value and are concerned that bitcoin could be one of the largest stimulus-driven market bubbles ever.