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bitcoin price chart, Raise your hand if you saw this coming: Bitcoin not only bounced back from its 2015 doldrums, but went on a tear that saw it climb around 120% from the start of the year. As of Wednesday afternoon, the crypto-currency was hovering around $970, and it has a shot of breaking $1,000 before 2016 is over.

Compare that to some of the other places you could have parked your money. Investing in equities would have earned you a modest 9% through the S&P or 7% from the tech heavy NASDAQ. Meanwhile, gold gave up most it gains from the year to finish up around 6% while oil was up about 50%.

crypto btc, Bitcoin was also the clear winner among other currencies, easily outstripping the approximately 20% gains posted by the Brazilian Real and the Russian Ruble.

Here’s a screenshot of its annual performance, courtesy of Bitcoin Charts:





market bitcoin, Bitcoin’s booming 2016 certainly came as a surprise to skeptics like me, who pointed to the failure of mainstream Bitcoin businesses to catch on, and investors’ decision to turn their attention to other types of blockchain instead. The 2016 performance is all the more surprising given that the crypto-currency absorbed yet more bad news this year, including a scary-sounding IRS investigation.

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So what explains Bitcoin’s banner year? Popular explanations include the risk of currency controls in China as well as geo-political instability that is leading people to seek a safe haven for those assets. Another reason could simply be bitcoin’s staying power—the longer it’s around, it seems less like a novelty and more like a bona fide store of value (buy bitcoin).

best place to buy bitcoin But if you’re thinking of rushing out to join the bitcoin bonanza, recall what happened the last time bitcoin went north of $1,000, which occurred in late 2013. This chart shows what happened the following year:

buy bitcoin with credit card instantly It’s true that the currency has displayed far fewer volatile swings than it has in the past. But, well, it’s bitcoin we’re talking about here. So it’s hard not to imagine there are not more jolts and surprise swings in the months ahead.

But to those who bought and held bitcoin a year ago, congratulations. It looks like your 2017 will begin on a sweet note.

The price of cryptocurrency bitcoin has passed its 2016 peak in recent days, buy bitcoin with debit card instantly with some market commentators taking it as a sign of fears about global growth in 2017.

The June high came after a spike in the price of the cryptocurrency following Britain’s shock vote to leave the European Union on June 28th.

However, within a month of the $775 high, the price of bitcoin fell bellow $600 again. It began steadily creeping up again in mid-October and has gained momentum in recent weeks cryptography basics.

Computer security and cryptography Mati Greenspan, a senior market analyst at trading platform eToro, says in an email on Wednesday morning: “If not in the stock markets, the fears are showing up somewhere. It’s been said before that Bitcoin is the new gold. So while gold shows absolutely no sign of acting like a barometer of fear, investors can start to look at this new shiny digital matter for guidance.”