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At $18,000 Levels, Bitcoin’s Market Cap Today Surpassed Pakistan And Ireland’s Nominal GDP

Swarajya Staff

Dec 08, 2017, 06:54 PM | Updated 06:54 PM IST


A recent spurt has seen Bitcoin’s market cap rise to record highs. (Dan Kitwood via Getty Images)
A recent spurt has seen Bitcoin’s market cap rise to record highs. (Dan Kitwood via Getty Images)

Bitcoin’s market value today surpassed $18,000 levels and with it expanded it’s total market cap above $300 billion, which is larger than Pakistan’s and Ireland’s 2016 GDP figures of $283 billion and $294 billion respectively.

Bitcoin is a cryptocurrency, which has recently gained worldwide popularity as it is increasingly seen as the future standard of decentralised currency.

Bitcoin’s market cap, having witnessed it’s current highs, is now being compared to several huge corporations and companies.

Starting at roughly $800 at the beginning of 2017, Bitcoin saw a massive rally owing to global demand and as cryptocurrency trading gained popularity throughout the world. After the record high over $18,000 the prices are now around varying around $15,000 putting the market cap at a little less than $260 billion.

Cryptocurrencies were born out of the concept of digital currencies and as a need for decentralised currencies was felt. Decentralised currencies aren’t regulated by governments or organisations which make them immune to governmental pressures as they don’t control their production or supply. Bitcoin was one of the first cryptocurrencies and has generated huge interest following it’s record high prices driven by demand.

However, as their valuations rise, cryptocurrencies like bitcoin are beginning to appear more and more like natural currencies with several countries beginning to assimilate then into their economic systems.

The Reserve Bank Of India, however, had expressed it’s concerns about cryptocurrencies in a press release.

Also Read: RBI Warning On Bitcoin Is A Bit Of A Joke; Cryptos Are Here To Stay And We Need To Deal With Them


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