Ethereum prices hit another record high Monday, breaking through the $3,000 barrier and tripling its year-to-date gains amid the ongoing surge in global cryptocurrencies.
Ether, the digital token used for transactions on the Ethereum blockchain, has more than doubled the year-to-date gains for Bitcoin as investors navigate towards the market for non-fungible tokens (NFTs) amid a broader shift into decentralized finance.
Ethereum’s scalable blockchain, which many technicians claims is newer and more nimble to that used by bitcoin, has formed part of its attraction to investors, as has the fact that its supply isn’t capped in the manner of its larger rival, which has limited issuance to 21 million.
“Ether is one of the main beneficiaries in the wider explosion in the cryptocurrency market,” said deVere Group CEO Nigel Green. “The boom over recent months has been fuelled by soaring interest from major institutional investors and growing recognition that borderless digital currencies are the future of money.
“This momentum is likely to build further in the near-term and I believe Ether will hit $5,000 within seven days,” he added.
Ether token prices were marked 8.7% higher on the CoinDesk exchange Monday and changing hands at $3,172.53 each, an all-time high that puts the cryptocurrency’s year-to-date gain at around 330%.
Bitcoin prices, meanwhile, were marked 3.5% higher at $58,800.35 each.
“Ether can be expected to significantly dent Bitcoin’s market dominance over the next year and beyond,” Green added. “Ethereum is already years ahead of Bitcoin in everything but price and fame. There’s a real sense that 2021 is the year for Ether. Its time has come”