Bitcoin Gaining Validity Fuels Rally in Virtual Currency: Tech

Bitcoin’s rally is accelerating as the U.S. Department of Justice’s description of the digital currency as a “legal means of exchange” bolsters the prospect of wider acceptance as an alternative payment system.

Bitcoins, which exist as software and aren’t regulated by any country or banking authority, surged to a record $744 on Bitstamp, an active Web-based exchange where they trade for dollars, euros and other currencies, after the remarks at a hearing by the U.S. Senate’s Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. The gains extended an advance that has seen the price of Bitcoins quadruple in the past two months and climb 45-fold so far this year.