It has been a wild few months in the world of cryptocurrency.
Bitcoin, ethereum (ether) and dogecoin have all seen new all-time highs, while ripple (XRP) bounced from a market cap of $10 billion to $30bn and back down again in the space of a few weeks amid "pump and dump" claims.
The recent run of good form for bitcoin began back in March, with market analysts attributing its gains to increased interest from institutional investors.
The world's first and largest cryptocurrency rose from below $5,000 to over $40,000 over 10 months, before falling slightly back down again.
Its fixed supply and utility as a store of value have led many to refer to it as "digital gold", having outperformed the traditional safe haven asset by a factor of 10 in 2020.
Follow all the latest news, analysis and market predictions here.
Following Elon Musk's recent tweets, and as Dogecoin's value continues to soar, here's a look at how it got here.
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The crypto markets have remained relatively stable overnight, consolidating the considerable gains made over the last few days.
Bitcoin and ethereum (ether) have moved by less than 1 per cent over the last 24 hours, however they are up 15 per cent and 27 per cent respectively over the last week.
We've reached out to market analysts and cryptocurrency experts to hear their thoughts on ethereum's recent price surge.
Here's what they had to say:
It's been a record-breaking week for ethereum, and this new high today at nearly $1,700 shows just how solid the demand is for the cryptoasset.
With more and more investors entering the market, the fundamentals supporting ethereum, and indeed bitcoin which is also back near record highs, are solid. We therefore expect ethereum to cross through the $2,000 mark in short order before reaching $2,500 by the end of the year.
Ethereum is in such high demand because the asset is undergoing changes to make it even more decentralised, and even more secure, and this is attracting buyers from both the institutional and retail world. While it has been volatile so far in 2021, it is nonetheless seeing higher highs, as well as higher lows, and we expect it will continue to prove the doubters wrong.
Simon Peters, cryptocurrency analyst at online investment platform eToro
We're witnessing a steady increase in the number of nodes involved in Ethereum 2.0 stacking, which increases the demand for the coin on cryptocurrency exchanges around the globe. "Ethereum technology carries limitless potential. Apart from all financial applications, It can be implemented in Trade and Commerce, Real Estate, Science, and even Art, as the case with NFTs (Non-Fungible Tokens). Ethereum 2.0 is sailing the waves of innovation with a Proof of Stake consensus algorithm that is more energy and cost-efficient than Bitcoin's Proof of Work. It is a better technology overall and can be widely used thanks to the leverage of innovative, smart contracts.
Boyko-Romanovsky, CEO and Founder of Allnodes
Ethereum is front and centre in the news today as it pierces a new all-time high above $1,600. This seems to be at least partly fuelled by speculation, but there is also an increasing recognition that blockchain-based technologies can address many commercial problems, from logistics to the ability to verify the source of certain products to payments. In this context, Ethereum’s upward trajectory may be representative of the fortunes of the entire cryptocurrency ecosystem.
Paolo Ardoino, CTO at Bitfinex
Expert reaction
We’ve reached out to market analysts and cryptocurrency experts to hear their take on the latest $40k milestone being breached.
Bitcoin smashing through $40,000 proves that the Covid crisis is powerful enough to shift the incumbent monetary order. The new all-time high is palpable evidence of a major social conversion – a metamorphosis from a dollar-dominated economy to blockchain-based, deflationary, and limitless finance.
Antoni Trenchev, co-founder and CEO of Nexo
The US$40k mark is the latest in a series of landmarks that act as proof of the trust and confidence that is building in Bitcoin as more and more people are recognizing it as a reliable alternative store of value to that which has been used for generations.
It is estimated by some that the value of all money in the world is approximately $90 trillion. The more that people perceive that their assets, particularly their liquid assets such as fiat currencies are eroding in value, the more they will look for alternatives.
Geoff Morphy, President of Bitfarms
Bitcoin reaching $40,000 is a historic milestone in a string of several, recent historic milestones.
It was only a short time ago that people debated whether bitcoin could compete or replace gold as a store of value. Now, a number of institutions are actually choosing bitcoin over gold. In turn, this has created a network effect propelling adoption into escape velocity.
We should continue to be aware that BTC and other cryptocurrencies are volatile assets. On 4 January, BTC fell by 17 per cent in one day but quickly recovered and has now reached the $40k mark. This is just one of many examples where BTC has recovered quickly from a sharp decline in price, which indicates we are likely just at the beginning of a long-term upwards price trajectory.
JC, (CO) at Komodo