Get 40% Off
🤯 This Tech Portfolio is up 29% YTD! Join Now to Get April’s Top PicksGet The Picks – Just 99 USD

Bitcoin holding above $4,000 after pulling back from record highs

Published 2017-08-16, 08:29 a/m
Updated 2017-08-16, 08:33 a/m
© Reuters.  Bitcoin holding above $4,000 after pulling back from record highs

© Reuters. Bitcoin holding above $4,000 after pulling back from record highs

Investing.com - The digital currency Bitcoin was holding above $4,000 on Wednesday after a massive surge earlier in the week propelled it above the $4,400 level for the first time in its nine-year history.

On the U.S.-based Bitfinex exchange, Bitcoin was last at $4,088.4, almost unchanged for the day. It rose as high as $4,430.0 on Tuesday before pulling back to $4,151.9 at the close.

Bitcoin has more than quadrupled in value so far this year and has gained around 42% in August. The surge means that the total market cap of Bitcoin has now risen to around $67 billion.

Bitcoin has rallied to a series of record highs in the past five days amid optimism that a software update designed to improve the coin's scalability and make it faster to process transactions will speed up the spread of the cryptocurrency.

New software called Segregated Witness, or SegWit was successfully adopted by the blockchain supporting Bitcoin last week.

The software was developed as a solution to the cryptocurrency’s scaling problem, which led to a split or so-called ‘hard fork’ on August 1 when the blockchain supporting Bitcoin split into two, creating Bitcoin Cash.

Elsewhere in cryptocurrency trading, Ethereum, the second biggest cryptocurrency by market cap after Bitcoin, was up 4.73% to $295.92.

Bitcoin Cash, the newly created offshoot of Bitcoin, was down 1.87% at $294.4, while Ripple lost 2.34% to trade at 15 cents.

To stay on top of the latest moves in the crypto-space, be sure to check out: https://www.investing.com/crypto/

Latest comments

Risk Disclosure: Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.
© 2007-2024 - Fusion Media Limited. All Rights Reserved.