Bitcoin surges past $2,000 for the first time

PanARMENIAN.Net - The world’s most popular cryptocurrency is now worth over $2,000 per coin. That’s according to a range of bitcoin exchanges, including Coinbase and Kraken. That valuation puts the total market cap of bitcoin — the total number of coins in circulation — at $32.92 billion, TechCrunch says.

Bitcoin first broke the $1,000 valuation mark way back in 2013, but a combination of factors — including the implosion of then-top exchange Mount Gox — saw the currency drop in value. Support from financial institutions trialed bitcoin and blockchain-based services, and a general stability following new regulation in China, saw bitcoin return to the $1,000 mark again at the end of last year. Since then, its valuation has continued to grow consistently through 2017.

Bitcoin isn’t the only cryptocurrency on the rise. Ripple, the centralized currency that is aiming to be a settlement protocol for major banks, has surged more than 10x, or 1000% in under a month making it now the second most valuable cryptocurrency (only behind bitcoin) in circulation.

Similarly, ethereum, a cryptocurrency designed to function as a blockchain-based computing platform for developers, is now trading $130 per coin with a total market cap of just under $12B, which represents a a little more than a 2x increase over the last month.