Bitcoin surged past USD 18,000 after it began trading on its first major global exchange, the latest in a series of highs that have excited some investors while leaving others nervous of a bubble.

Trading of the controversial digital currency on a futures contract began at 6:00 pm (2300 GMT) on the Chicago board options exchange (Cboe) at a price of USD 15,000. Heavy traffic made the Cboe website inaccessible in the first 20 minutes, but it said that “trading runs on very separate systems and was totally unaffected by the website issues.”

Around 0320 GMT, bitcoin was trading at USD 17,750 per unit for the futures contract expiring on January 17, thus exceeding the highest value it had reached on alternative non-regulated internet platforms. It even climbed past USD 18,000.

A futures contract is a financial product that allows investors to bet on whether the currency’s price will rise or fall.

Bob Fitzsimmons, a futures manager at Wedbush Securities, described the opening as “quiet and steady,” as Cboe data showed around a thousand trades were made in the first two hours. The Cboe debut is expected to be followed a week later by a rival listing on Chicago Mercantile Exchange.

It marks the first opportunity for professional traders to invest in bitcoin, even as some steer away because of a lack of regulations surrounding the currency. “It gives it legitimacy. It recognizes that it’s an asset you can trade,” said Nick Colas, of Data Trek research.

Among those cheering the launch are the Winklevoss twins, who have been called the first bitcoin billionaires. Critics include financial commentator Jim Cramer, who warns that prices could tumble once the new trading venues open the door to “short sellers,” who bet on downward moves in assets.

The two launches were made possible after a key US regulator, the Commodities and Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), gave the green light to the exchanges on December 1, while warning “of the potentially high level of volatility and risk in trading these contracts.”

Anticipation of the first mainstream listings for the digital currency has been a catalyst for a sharp price increase in recent weeks. Bitcoin opened 2017 at around USD 1,000, surged past USD 10,000 for the first time last month and soared as high as USD 16,777 on Thursday before retreating somewhat.

The actual opening of the Cboe market, an electronic trading venue, was a low-key affair, lacking the pomp of an initial public offering, which is often marked by the new entrant ringing the bell of the New York Stock Exchange.

The embrace by mainstream exchanges of bitcoin futures marks a sea change from the days when the digital currency was associated with drug dealing and other illicit activities.

Cryptocurrency Bitcoin made its debut on the Chicago board options exchange on Sunday, opening at $15,000 per unit. Around 23:20 GMT, the price of the currency had risen to USD 15,940 dollars on a futures contract scheduled for settlement on January 17 according to data provided by the Chicago board options exchange (Cboe).

A futures contract is a financial product that allows investors to bet on whether the currency’s price will rise or fall. It is the first opportunity for professional investors to invest in bitcoin. Many are wary of embracing bitcoin because it has no central bank backing it and no legal exchange rate.

The first twenty minutes of trading saw volatility, with the price rising to USD 16,600 per unit before going down. Bob Fitzsimmons, a futures manager at Wedbush Securities, told AFP approximately 150 trades were made in the first few minutes. “It’s quiet,” he said.

Its price was $15,250 in pre-opening trades that took place 45 minutes before the official start, Fitzsimmons added. This was still far short of its highs of $17,000 on other non-regulated online platforms last week. The Cboe website was down at the time of the debut on Sunday.

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