Bitcoin smashes through $6,100 to hit a new record high

Bitcoin set a new record high on Saturday breaking through the $6,100 barrier.

The cryptocurrency hit an all-time high of $6,147.07 just a day after pushing through the $6,000 mark, according to data from industry website CoinDesk.

Much of the rise can be attributed to another upcoming split in bitcoin known as a “fork”. This will lead to the creation of a new cryptocurrency called bitcoin gold. Holders of bitcoin will get some bitcoin gold when it is issued, essentially giving them free money.

But Alex Sunnarborg, founding partner of cryptocurrency fund Tetras Capital, told CNBC on Friday that bitcoin investors were betting on bitcoin holding its status despite the split. Bitcoin already underwent a fork in August when a new cryptocurrency called bitcoin cash was created. Despite this, bitcoin has continued to perform strongly.

At the same time, there are rumors that China could reverse its ban on cryptocurrency exchanges which is also giving bitcoin a boost.

Bullishness around bitcoin continues despite big business figures like JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon calling it a “fraud” and saying that people who invest in it are “stupid”.

In an unscientific survey carried out by CNBC this week, nearly half of the more than 23,000 people who voted said bitcoin is heading to over $10,000. Former hedge fund manager Michael Novogratz told CNBC in a recent interview that he sees bitcoin heading to $10,000 in the next six to 10 months.

Bitcoin has also been helped by favorable regulation in Japan which recently allowed companies to accept the digital currency as payment. Around 57 percent of the trade in bitcoin was executed in Japanese yen on Saturday, according to industry website CryptoCompare.

But the virtual currency has also suffered regulatory setbacks including China banning cryptocurrency exchanges.

Still, the price of bitcoin has risen over 500 percent year-to-date.

Source: CNBC