Bitcoin breaches $30,000 for the first time as rally extends into new year

Bitcoin, the world’s largest cryptocurrency, topped $30,000 for the first time, just weeks after passing another major milestone.

The currency gained almost 6% on Saturday to reach nearly $31,000, before slipping back to about $30,800 as of 1:15 p.m. in London. It advanced almost 50% in December, when it breached $20,000 for the first time.

The latest gains top an eye-popping rally for the controversial digital asset in 2020, which rebounded sharply after a severe crash in March that saw it lose 25% amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Bitcoin has increasingly been “embraced in more global investment portfolios as holders expand beyond