Bitcoin wins buying wave on Thanksgiving: breaking through $8,700 to set a new record high

Bitcoin climbed to $8,700, a record high, as investor interest grew ahead of the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday and Black Friday shopping.

Data from Bitcoin trading platform Bistamp showed that Bitcoin rose by more than $500, or 6.5%, to a record high of $8,735. Ethereum currently fell 0.8% to $467, hovering near the record high of $488 set on November 25.

“This phenomenon appears to be retail driven,” said Brian Kelly, a CNBC contributor and CEO of BKCM, a digital asset strategy firm.

“Interestingly, everyone I’ve spoken to in the Bitcoin community has said that the discussion around the Thanksgiving table is about Bitcoin, and that this has inspired many family members to buy Bitcoin,” Kelly said. “I suspect this pattern is repeated at dinner tables everywhere.”