Late Thursday night, the price of a single bitcoin was the highest it’s ever been in the history of the virtual currency: $1,172.09, according to bitcoin trade blog CoinDesk, which keeps track of bitcoin’s value in real-time.
Through Friday morning the price continued to rise, hitting a high of $1,206.60 before levelling off.
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For some perspective on how completely bonkers that is, consider this: Just seven years ago, in 2010, someone paid 10,000 bitcoins for two pizzas. At today’s prices, that would be a $12 million meal.
The bitcoin community is over the moon, particularly those who were early adopters and have been holding on to their bitcoins in case they ever appreciated in value. Someone who bought 30 bitcoins when they were worth mere cents each can now afford to buy a new car with them.
The question now is whether or not the price will stay high. This is uncharted territory, and the last time bitcoin’s price reached similar highs in 2013, a massive crash followed shortly behind. In a matter of weeks, a single bitcoin went from being worth more than $1,000 to roughly $500.
As for what’s driving the price up now, the accepted narrative seems to be investor speculation due to the anticipated approval of a bitcoin investment fund owned by the Winklevoss twins. The Securities and Exchange Commission’s judgement on the fund is set to come down in March.
But for now, bitcoiners have a tough choice to make: Do you get while the getting’s good and cash out, or do you hold?
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