Cryptocurrency news: Bitcoin, Ripple and Ethereum are RISING today – but why?

prices soared Monday morning as reported emerge BlackRock may be looking to enter the crypto-market. 

The market jumped into the green this morning after suffering a worried few weeks that saw prices slump to a 3 month low. 

Bitcoin has jumped up 4.05 percent to trade at $6,631.70, while Ethereum is trading for $476.81. Ripple is going for $0.467241 (up 4.67 percent) and Litecoin is trading for $83.49 (up 7.09 percent).

Most of the major digital coins rose roughly 4 percent on the day, as confidence in the market increases. 

Bitcoin, Ripple, and Ethereum are rising today – but why? 

According to unnamed sources, the cryptocurrency market is about to see a big bump from a major investor. 

London’s Financial News newspaper has reported BlackRock has created a department specifically to investigate cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology. 

This is big news for a market which seeks legitimate investor backing to stabilise prices. 

The rumours are significant given the size and influence that BlackRock wields. 

The American global investment firm manages $6.288 trillion and is the tenth largest hedge fund in the world. 

According to one of the sources, the asset management giant will study whether it should invest in bitcoin futures. The sources also said that BlackRock’s working group will keep a close eye on what its competitors are doing in regard to cryptocurrencies and blockchain.

“Like most financial institutions, BlackRock has a working group that meets periodically to exchange information on blockchain and consists of employees from various parts of the business,” a spokesperson for the company said in an emailed statement.

“We have been looking at blockchain technology for several years, recognising potential for shared processes and data across market participants, clearing, settlement and reconciliation and simplified securities issuance.”

Experts were surprised to learn that this new task force is not a new development, but has been working quietly in the background since 2015. 

The news is credited as the reason for the significant bump up in price for coins like and Ethereum, which has seen a tumultuous time in the last few weeks. 

A series of large-scale hacks on exchanges Bithumb and CoinRail saw investor confidence wane. 

But recent events suggest a whole host of hedge funds are looking to make moves in the market. 

Many industry experts believe that increased involvement from institutional investors in the cryptocurrency space will boost confidence in an otherwise dubious market.

Mati Greenspan, senior market analyst at eToro, said: “It definitely is causing some excitement. 

“The idea of big financial firms moving into crypto certainly isn’t new and this is a trend we’ve been noticing gaining strength since November.”

Last year, two trading giants, CME Group and the CBOE, launched bitcoin futures products, lifting hopes of institutional involvement in cryptocurrencies.

Virtual currencies have been shrouded in doubt due to excessive volatility in the market resulting in wild price swings. Bitcoin soared close to $20,000 late last year, but has declined since, with transaction volumes falling significantly.