'Unstoppable' bitcoin tops US$61,000

Bitcoin topped US$61,000 (HK$475,800) for the first time as the stimulus-fueled rally of the past year prompts investors to ignore signs of a speculative fervor.

The original cryptocurrency once touched US$61,556.59 yesterday, data from Coindesk showed, bouncing back from a rout at the end of February following a previous peak set that month.

It's benefiting from optimism in financial markets after President Joe Biden signed the US$1.9 trillion pandemic-relief bill into law. It was traded at US$59,669.49 last night.

After ending last year with a fourth-quarter surge of 170 percent to around US$29,000, bitcoin jumped to US$40,000 seven days later.

It took just a little more than a month to breach the latest threshold. Bitcoin traded for a few cents for several years after its debut more than a decade ago.

"Stimulus checks, Elon Musk's relentless support, short-sellers throwing in the towel, and weekend liquidity were just what was needed to send Bitcoin above the US$60,000 level," said Ed Moya, senior market analyst at Oanda Corp.

"Bitcoin once again seems to be an unstoppable force and no one wants to get in the way of this momentum trade," he said.

Bitcoin's price soared this year as major firms, such as BNY Mellon, asset manager BlackRock, credit card giant Mastercard, backed cryptocurrencies, while those such as Tesla, Square and MicroStrategy invested in bitcoin.