As you watch the lightning rally of bitcoin, other cryptocurrencies have a moment.
Ether, the digital symbol of the Ethereum blockchain, climbed over $ 1,000 on Monday to reach its highest level since February 2, 2018. Ether last traded at $ 1,038, up 30% in the last 24 hours, according to data from crypto news. CoinDesk website.
It comes after Bitcoin set a new all-time record, briefly surpassing the $ 34,000 mark. The world’s largest cryptocurrency by market value gathered early Sunday at $ 34,452, before rising to about $ 31,780 a month.
Even XRP, the virtual currency linked to the controversial blockchain start-up Ripple, went up on Monday. XRP has increased by about 7% in the last 24 hours, trading at about 23 cents.
It is still worth less than half of what it was two weeks ago, when the US Securities and Exchange Commission filed a complaint against Ripple, claiming that the company had made an unregistered offer of securities to XRP.
Meanwhile, the litecoin traded 10% higher on Monday to about $ 155. Litecoin was created by crypto entrepreneur Charles Lee with the intention of processing transactions faster than Bitcoin’s core blockchain network.
Alternatives to bitcoin, sometimes referred to as “altcoins” in the cryptocurrency industry, often come together in moments of strength for bitcoin. Many other coins won after bitcoin approached $ 20,000 in 2017, amid growing interest from retail investors in the space.
“The super-exponential pace of gains is impressive, but it carries the risk of very clear corrections when they finally arrive,” John Hardy, head of FX strategy at Saxo Bank, said in a note on Monday.
Ether has reached an all-time high of $ 1,400, which it reached in mid-January 2018. The cryptocurrency network recently began a major update called Ethereum 2.0, which is expected to make it faster and more secure.
Crypto bullish investors believe that Ethereum could become the model of a decentralized, next-generation internet because it accepts applications in its network. An important theme in 2020 was the growth of decentralized finance, or DeFi, which aims to replicate traditional financial products, such as loans without intermediaries such as banks.
Bitcoin experienced a historic rally last year, when it advanced by more than 300%. Virtual currency began life in 2009 and has come a long way from its anti-establishment roots in the wake of the financial crisis, seeing adoption from major companies such as PayPal and Fidelity and increased interest from institutional investors.