Bitcoin rose to a two-and-a-half-week peak on Monday and ether climbed to a fresh record as cryptocurrencies ride higher on a wave of momentum, flows, favourable news and inflation fears.
Bitcoin was last up about 3% at $65,121 and ether, which underpins the ethereum network, sat at a record top of $4,711.
Ether is up 57% since the start of October and bitcoin about 50% as investors have cheered last month's launch of a U.S. futures-based bitcoin exchange-traded fund and sought exposure to an asset class sometimes regarded as an inflation hedge.
Falling real yields, as traders brace for inflation, adds to the attractiveness of assets such as gold and cryptocurrencies which do not pay a coupon, said Kyle Rodda, analyst at broker IG Markets, adding that the mood in the sector has also been good.
"Financial institutions want to be a part of it, regulators don't want to clamp down on it too much," he said. "We're almost past the inflection point, where it's part of the system and its going to be very, very hard to extricate it."
In recent weeks Australia's biggest bank has said it will offer crypto trading to retail customers, Singaporean authorities have sounded positive on the asset class and spillover from a positive mood in stocks has also leant support.
Last week New York Mayor-elect Eric Adams said he would take his first three paychecks in bitcoin and signaled his intention to make his city the "center of the cryptocurrency industry" after a similar pledge from Miami's mayor.
(Reporting by Tom Westbrook; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman)
(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Dear Reader,
Business Standard has always strived hard to provide up-to-date information and commentary on developments that are of interest to you and have wider political and economic implications for the country and the world. Your encouragement and constant feedback on how to improve our offering have only made our resolve and commitment to these ideals stronger. Even during these difficult times arising out of Covid-19, we continue to remain committed to keeping you informed and updated with credible news, authoritative views and incisive commentary on topical issues of relevance.
We, however, have a request.
As we battle the economic impact of the pandemic, we need your support even more, so that we can continue to offer you more quality content. Our subscription model has seen an encouraging response from many of you, who have subscribed to our online content. More subscription to our online content can only help us achieve the goals of offering you even better and more relevant content. We believe in free, fair and credible journalism. Your support through more subscriptions can help us practise the journalism to which we are committed.
Support quality journalism and subscribe to Business Standard.
Digital Editor
RECOMMENDED FOR YOU