Bitcoin: El Salvador’s experiment does not warrant cross-cryptocurrency price rise

Bitcoin: El Salvador’s experiment does not warrant cross-cryptocurrency price rise

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Early adopters of virtual currencies have a clear incentive to promote mainstream acceptance. The more buyers, the higher the price. Crypto fans, therefore, hatched an online plan to bolster bitcoin as El Salvador legalised the tokens for payments. That was logical. The knock-on rise in other cryptocurrency prices was not.

Bitcoin’s 8 per cent rise over the past seven days means that it is now worth about $51,000. But according to data from CoinGecko, which tracks more than 9,000 coins, it is not the largest mover. Ethereum, the world’s second-largest cryptocurrency, has leapt 16 per cent over the past week. Solana’s SOL tokens have risen 69 per cent.

There is no sensible reason for these rallies. El Salvador is not expected to make other virtual currencies legal tender. Instead, the jumps reflect a soupy mixture of low rates, blind faith and better investor access.

Trading apps make it easier for retail investors to buy cryptos. The initial public offering of Coinbase in April raised its profile, leading to a jump in downloads.

The make-believe world of nonfungible tokens, or NFTs, has also given cryptos a boost. These prove ownership of