Investing.com - Ethereum, the second most valuable cryptocurrency by market cap after bitcoin, hit fresh record highs on Friday on speculation that that the upward trend in digital assets will continue.
At 9:32AM ET (14:32GMT), Ethereum was last up 7.12% at $434.00, just off a record high of $444.44 earlier on Friday.
Meanwhile, Bitcoin was also up 2.03% at $8,150.8 on the Bitfinex exchange. On Tuesday, it hit $8,380.00, the highest level in its nine-year history.
Both cryptocurrencies have surged this week amid further speculation that the bullish rally, which has taken Bitcoin up more than 700% this year and caused Ethereum to skyrocket by more than 5,200% year-to-date, continued to catch new attention from investors.
Last Tuesday, billionaire investor Mike Novogratz predicted ethereum would hit $500 by the end of the year with its larger rival reaching $10,000.
Prices have also been supported by hopes for increased inflows from institutional investors after the derivative exchange operators CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) and Cboe announced plans to launch a bitcoin futures contract this year.
Still, Bitcoin, with a market cap of $137.5 billion passing McDonald’s, has seen volatile trade this year, with three separate corrections of more than 25% all giving way to subsequent rallies.
Bitcoin’s rapid rise has fueled fears over an asset bubble. The digital currency is still rarely used to purchase actual goods or services, making it almost entirely a vehicle for speculation.
Recent volatility has arisen from an uptick in investors switching to alternative cryptocurrencies, most notably Bitcoin Cash, sending it surging.
Prices have also been boosted by a recent proliferation of initial coin offerings (ICOs), in which start-ups create a new virtual coin or token and offer it for public sale.
According to data from Coindesk there have been more than 160 ICOs this year, which have collectively raised more than $3 billion.
Elsewhere in cryptocurrency trading on Friday, Bitcoin cash gained 0.43% to $1,650.10, Ripple fell 1.27% to $0.23785 while Dash slipped 0.20% to $558.00.