On Wednesday, the price of bitcoin surged to an all-time high after CME Group Inc., the world’s largest exchange owner, announced it plans to introduce bitcoin futures by the end of the year.
“Based on the Bitcoin protocol, the blockchain database is shared by all nodes participating in a system. Upon joining the network, each connected computer receives a copy of the blockchain, which has records, and stands as proof of, every transaction ever executed. It can thus provide insight about facts like how much value belonged a particular address at any point in the past,” according to Investopedia.
Cryptocurrency market capitalization has grown in recent years to $172 billion, with bitcoin representing more than 54 percent of that total, or $94 billion. The bitcoin spot market has also grown to trade roughly $1.5 billion in notional value each day.
For more information on the cryptocurrency, visit our Bitcoin category.