Bitcoin led the global cryptocurrency market back above $500 billion in market capitalization thanks to surprising news from The Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE: GS).
The banking giant plans to launch a Bitcoin trading desk, sponsoring different investment contracts that are tied to the price of Bitcoin. The bank hopes to eventually trade actual Bitcoin in the future.
The news has many bulls predicting that the crypto coin will easily return to its all-time high of around $20,000 before the end of 2018.
Here is a recap of the top five cryptocurrencies by market cap as of 2:00 p.m. EST.
| Cryptocurrency | Market Cap | Price | Change (24h) |
| Bitcoin (BTC) | $164,187,448,688 | $9,649.50 | +0.53% |
| Ethereum (ETH) | $77,141,330,364 | $777.41 | +1.94% |
| Ripple (XRP) | $34,886,359,500 | $0.89 | +0.69% |
| Bitcoin Cash (BCH) | $25,731,071,044 | $1,503.90 | -0.24% |
| EOS | $14,263,578,663 | $17.09 | -3.67% |
Now here's a closer look at today's Money Morning cryptocurrency insight, as well as the most important cryptocurrency updates you need to know...
Money Morning Cryptocurrency Insight of the Day
If you're new to Bitcoin, you might think that you've missed out on the big profits. After all, Bitcoin surged as high as $20,000 before pulling back.
He's DONE with Stocks: One of America's top stock trading experts has uncovered a new way to collect thousands of dollars each week - without having to deal with a single disappointing stock ever again. Click here.
But there are only three words that you need to know if you want to cash in on the next wave: Bitcoin Lightning Network.
Money Morning Cryptocurrency Expert David Zeiler takes you behind the curtain of this once-in-a-generation development and shows you how to make big gains from Bitcoin in 2018.
The Top Cryptocurrency Stories for Friday
- Richard Branson spoke out against the "worrying" trend of cryptocurrency scams around the globe that use his likeness. Branson is concerned that many people have claimed that he endorsed certain cryptocurrency schemes. "While I have often commented on the potential benefits of genuine Bitcoin developments, I absolutely do not endorse these fake Bitcoin stories," Branson wrote on his company blog.
- The price of Ethereum popped more than 11% overnight before pulling back. The rally came after legal analysts said that the laws of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission do not classify Ethereum as a security. "We spent a tremendous amount of time with lawyers in the U.S. and in other countries, and are extremely comfortable that it is not a security; it never was a security," Ethereum co-founder Joseph Lubin said this week.
- Is the U.S. Federal Reserve going to create a rival cryptocurrency to Bitcoin? A former Federal Reserve governor said that global central banks need to get involved in the rush of cryptocurrencies. Kevin Harsh - who was recently in consideration to become the chair of the U.S. central bank - said that if he headed the central bank, he would have appointed a team to consider "the Fed creating FedCoin, where we would bring legal activities into a digital coin."
A New Era of Moneymaking Has Arrived (It's About to Change Everything)
The market has been relentless, unpredictable, and at times downright disappointing.
But after 36 years of making millions off stocks, this man is done with stocks for good.
He's just cracked the code to creating as much as millions of dollars in new wealth without having to deal with a single unreliable stock ever again.
Click here for the extraordinary details.
Follow Money Morning on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
[mmpazkzone name="end-story-hostage" network="9794" site="307044" id="138536" type="4"]