Bitcoin soars above $35,000, hitting new high

Bitcoin soared on Wednesday to touch an all-time high, as the cryptocurrency continued trading wildly.

The price of bitcoin rallied to hit above $35,000 as of about 1:07 a.m. EST Wednesday, according to data from Coin Metrics.

The price surge came just days after it slumped more than 10% to $29,316. That followed a more than 300% jump in 2020 to levels above $29,000.

On Monday, JPMorgan published a note with a bold long-term price target for bitcoin, claiming the cryptocurrency could soar to as high as $146,000 as it competes with gold as an “alternative” currency. The precious metal also saw sizable gains in 2020, with spot gold rising about 25% for the year.

The bank’s strategists, however, said that bitcoin will need to become substantially less volatile before it can match gold in terms of market value. The price of the cryptocurrency is known to go through wild swings.

The U.S. investing banking giant’s call was notable given CEO Jamie Dimon’s past comments on bitcoin. Dimon once called the cryptocurrency a “fraud.” 

Meanwhile, PwC’s global cryto leader Henri Arslanian told CNBC’s “Street Signs Asia” on Monday that the recent surge in bitcoin to record levels was in part driven by the entry of larger, institutional investors into the market.

— CNBC’s Ryan Browne and Saheli Roy Choudhury contributed to this report.