Bitcoin price hits a new record high of over $ 12,000 following news that PayPal would follow Square and allow its users to buy, sell, and transfer the cryptocurrency. That news has helped to drive the value of bitcoin to just under $13,000, marking its highest level since around January of 2018, when the appetite for blockchain-backed currencies was just off its apex. But PayPal’s report isn’t the only reason that digital currencies are garnering more shine, after the price of bitcoin’s staged a stunning collapse from a December 2017 peak at around $20,000 a bitcoin. Earlier in the week, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell endorsed digital currency, saying that there might be benefits to a digital version of the U.S. dollar. " bitcoin, which originated in 2009 as a decentralized platform, was created by Satoshi Nakamoto, the person or persons who wrote the software code for the digital currency back in 2009. bitcoin is underpinned by the blockchain network, which is the digital-ledger technology that makes bitcoin and other cryptos decentralized and anonymous payment platforms. " by MarketWatch.