Bitcoin marks 10-fold increase in 2017

Virtual currency bitcoin soared to an all-time high above $10,000 on Wednesday on major exchanges and digital currency indexes, including the widely followed Luxembourg-based trading platform BitStamp.

At 0600 GMT, it was quoted around $10,115 on BitStamp, coming sharply off a high of $10,743.61, which was a rise of more than 5 percent on the day.

Created in 2009, bitcoin uses encryption and a blockchain database that enables the fast and anonymous transfer of funds outside of a traditional centralized payment system.

It has increased more than 10-fold in value so far this year, posting the largest gain of all asset classes, amid increased institutional demand for crypto-currencies as financial and mainstream use has expanded.