The price of Litecoin has just risen to US$195.66 per coin – its highest price point to date. Forbes revealed that the cryptocurrency is currently enjoying a year-to-date (YTD) return of 4,215%, having started 2017 priced at US$4.33.
Litecoin experienced several dramatic movements of its price this 2017. Earlier this year, FXCM reported that Litecoin’s price plunged to nearly US$30 almost immediately after it climbed to US$92. In fact, its recent surge came after a price fall that saw its value plunge below US$100 the previous week in the aftermath of the Coinbase GDAX exchange crash. However,
it has also seen some price hikes this year, culminating in its recent new high.
The recent surge in Litecoin’s price followed just the day after Cboe Global Markets launched Bitcoin futures trading. While this announcement involved Bitcoin, the leading cryptocurrency,
Cryptocoins News suggests that the news actually led to the boost in prices of all the other digital currencies on the market, including Litecoin, Ethereum, and Ripple. The article states that next to Bitcoin, Litecoin’s performance was the most impressive compared to the other cryptocurrencies, enjoying a nearly 18% percent increase during that day.
Litecoin creator Charlie Lee’s recent media appearances to promote the cryptocurrency may have also contributed to the increase in its price. According to some analysts, providing information about the digital currency to the general public may have enticed some to invest in Litecoin, which, in turn, contributed to its price rise. While it’s still not as popular as the better-known Bitcoin, We earlier reported here at Cryptovein.com that it is steadily gaining its own share of investors.
The upward surge Litecoin is experiencing has led some experts to see it as a more affordable, but possibly equally as lucrative, option to Bitcoin. Money Morning points out that investors, particularly new ones, cannot or will not purchase Bitcoins, which is currently priced at over $17,000 per coin. In contrast, Litecoin’s affordability, speedier confirmation of transactions, and faster block time has made the cryptocurrency more attractive to some investors.
Some have even regarded Litecoin as the most trusted alternative to Bitcoin, according to an article on The Merkle. The gains and advantages offered by the cryptocurrency have even led the publication to suggest the possibility of this digital currency taking over the top spot on the market later on in the future, a prospect that may very well occur if Bitcoin’s bubble finally bursts, as predicted by analysts. However, it’s worth mentioning that the other alternative – Litecoin falling together with Bitcoin – is also just as likely to occur, considering that the two cryptocurrencies have historically shown similar movements in the market. As this recent price movement showed, an increase in the price of
Bitcoin can also lead to a surge in Litecoin’s value. Therefore, it is not totally unrealistic to think that the latter’s value could fall if the former crashes as well.
While both cryptocurrencies are currently enjoying price surges, experts caution investors against putting a significant sum of their money in the digital currency market, given its volatility. Care must be undertaken when investing in digital currencies to avoid experiencing massive losses.
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