Bitcoin's value has just absolutely skyrocketed and is close to a record all-time high
The current value of Bitcoin is not far off a record.
While Bitcoin has been around for a while now, the cryptocurrency has rarely seen the highs it's seeing now.
Somehow Bitcoin has been around since 2009 - making it 15 years old this year.
I know, where has the time gone.
And in that period of time, the cryptocurrency has gone through its highs and lows.
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But at the start of 2024, Bitcoin's value is well and truly on on the up as it has hit $60,000 for the first time since November 2021.
One Bitcoin cost $60,650 at one point on Wednesday (28 February), after multiple days of high rises.
And the current value of Bitcoin is not far off an all-time high of $67,707 recorded on 9 November 2021.
If you recall back to those days, we were very much still in pandemic territory - with many turning to cryptocurrency as they were quite frankly bored of being stuck indoors and needed something to do.
As a result, the latest value of Bitcoin is even more impressive.
After a collapse in late 2022, Bitcoin has seen a resurgence in recent months.
That has in part been down to new products in the US allowing people to track the value of Bitcoin without owning it.
Those familiar with cryptocurrency will know this as exchange traded fund (ETF).
Remarkably, Bitcoin has risen by 42 percent since 2024 began and 20 percent since Saturday (24 February).
In US currency, Bitcoin is trading at around $59,270 - just a few thousand short of a record.
But as many consider whether to take a plunge with Bitcoin, the number of them in the market from April is set to be permanently cut by 50 percent.
Around 900 Bitcoins are created every single day, which will be cut to 450 in the coming months.
As per Sky News, Simon Peters, a crypto analyst at financial services company eToro, said: "The price surge comes after a week of consolidation which may have to be down to a slow down in the amount of bitcoin being bought by the spot ETFs versus prior weeks."
It comes after a man who threw away $190,000,000 Bitcoin fortune is now using AI to potentially locate it.
In 2013, James Howells, from Newport, Wales, accidentally threw out the hard drive which contained 8,000 Bitcoin.
Howells has been on a decade-long mission to relocate his lost hard drive, and is now said to be turning to AI to help him find it.
Topics: Bitcoin, Cryptocurrency, Money
Callum Jones