 surged through new highs of $12,000 on Wednesday, despite a slowdown in world markets.){kind=link}
Crypto-currency Bitcoin (CURRENCY:BTC) surged through new highs of $12,000 on Wednesday, despite a slowdown in world markets.
The currency gained 6 percent in early morning trading, surging past the $12,000 mark to hit $12,488.
This year has seen the cryptocurrency rise all the way from the $1,000 back in January, as it increasingly gains traction across mainstream markets.
Nevertheless, central banks continue warn against ‘a bubble’. Over the course of the past week the Chinese and Indian Central Banks warned of the dangers of betting against cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and its rivals.
Ultimately, however, Bitcoin received a boost after an announcement on Friday by the U.S. derivatives regulator that it would permit CME Group Inc and CBOE Global Markets to list bitcoin futures contracts.
This comes after New York Private Schools and a London Developer moved to accept Bitcoin for fees and deposits, as the decentralised currency moves towards mainstream acceptance.
Alongside the dominant Bitcoin, other cypto-currencies such as Ethereum and Ripple have also been enjoying rallies on the back of this.
The cryptocurrency remains controversial due to the lack of central government control, which has given rise to claims that it enables international crime networks, money laundering and props up the dark web as a result of its de-centralised nature.
This is a sentiment shared by JP Morgan (NYSE:JPM) boss, Jamie Dimon, who back in September dismissed the phenomenon as “fraud”, and only fit for use by drug dealers, murderers and “people living in places such as North Korea”.
Despite Mr Dimon’s adversity towards the new mediums of exchange, JP Morgan is in the process of developing its own algorithm, Quorum based upon blockchain technology alongside Bitcoin competitor, Ethereum.
This comes amid moves by European government’s to begin to regulate the emerging markets. UK and EU leaders revealed plans this week to launch a crackdown on the Bitcoin amid fears tax evasion and money laundering.