Risky bettors send Bitcoin soaring

The price of Bitcoin hit a record high on Monday as investors increasingly scoop up risky assets amid the topsy-turvy pandemic economy.

The controversial cryptocurrency’s value hit an all-time peak of $19,864.15, shattering its previous high-water mark of $19,783.21 which was set in December 2017. Bitcoin pulled back off the highs and closed at $19,688.

Bitcoin has gained more than 170 percent this year, with most of that growth coming since September. Investors cite demand for riskier assets amid unprecedented fiscal and monetary stimulus, hunger for assets perceived as resistant to inflation and expectations that cryptocurrencies will win mainstream acceptance as payment companies including PayPal and Square have allowed their use.

This most recent crypto craze is benefiting from a pandemic-marred market reality in which stocks are trading at nosebleed prices while bond yields are around zero. That combination has created a new class of crypto investor that views assets like Bitcoin in a whole new light.

“You need to put your money somewhere,” Marc van der Chijs, a longtime crypto investor and founder of First Block Capital, told The Post. “Bonds have no yield, keeping it in cash is dangerous. People used to put their money in gold, but gold is going down. It looks like people are taking their money out of gold and putting it into bitcoin.”

Crypto mavens like van der Chijs also believe that this market will help this new rally last much longer than the 2017 surge that lost steam and half its value within days of hitting its high mark.