New York/London  — Bitcoin jumped to an 18-month high on Wednesday, as investors looked for safety in alternative investments amid geopolitical tension, and cheered prospects that Facebook’s Libra token could push cryptocurrencies into the mainstream.

The world’s biggest cryptocurrency has surged in value since April and on Wednesday hit a peak of $13,666.02 on the Bitstamp exchange, the highest level since January 2018. So far in 2019, bitcoin has risen more than 260%, although it remains below its all-time high of nearly $20,000 hit in December 2017...

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