Bitcoin fever has hit Japan, and it’s helping the virtual currency go parabolic.Despite a volatile week in which the virtual currency fell $400 in a few hours Thursday but still rose on the day, bitcoin has kept streaking to fresh highs.It was up 15% for the week and is up 110% since the end of March.Friday afternoon, it traded at $2,268, down from its all-time peak of $2,792 set Thursday.One of the leading causes: new... Most Popular Videos Film Clip: 'The Big Sick' Lower Your Wireless Bill With These Tips 'Bridge Crew': Voice Command Comes to 'Star Trek' VR Videogame A New Road to Income: Barron's Buzz Film Clip: 'The Beguiled'BitcoinBitcoin’s Wild Ride: Are Governments Fueling the Price Surge?Jeff John RobertsWhat a crazy week for bitcoin.The digital currency is famous for its volatility, but in the last few days, it soared from $2,000 to nearly $2,800.And after a $400 plunge on Thursday, it is sitting around $2,450.Oh, and if you're keeping track, bitcoin is up about 100% since the start of the month.There are various explanations for the price surge, which include: a flood of new investors from Japan and Korea; blockchain technology (which drives bitcoin) going mainstream; and, of course, speculative mania.But the most intriguing theory about the bitcoin boom involves national governments.

Specifically, are central banks acquiring bitcoin to hold as reserves alongside gold and foreign currencies?Vinny Lingham, a well-known entrepreneur and digital currency enthusiast, predicted last year that a price surge could lead governments to take a strategic interest in bitcoin as an asset.Relatedvoice assistantsGoogle Home Outsmarts Amazon Alexa in 3,000 Question Quizvoice assistantsGoogle Home Outsmarts Amazon Alexa in 3,000 Question Quiz"If Bitcoin started to surge globally, and as a result of strategic interests from any one government, if other governments decided to own a piece of the limited 21m coins in issue, I believe this would trigger something akin to a digital commodity race.Imagine if China started buying up large amounts of Bitcoin — would the rest of the world governments stand idly by and watch?"he wrote in a blog post.Lingham made the point again on Twitter this week, citing a possible rivalry between Asian countries:Well, looks like Japan started - same principle applies.

China will not let Japan take pole position... https://t.co/BVfwZPhSKK- Vinny Lingham (@VinnyLingham) May 25, 2017It's not clear if Lingham is being entirely serious.(A subsequent tweet hinted the Japan comment might have been in jest.)But the idea of central banks acquiring bitcoin is hardly far-fetched.The Central Bank of Barbados, for instance, published a research paper on whether the country should buy digital currency.And other CEOs have made the same suggestion:I believe some governments will start buying small amounts of bitcoin as reserves in 2017.1 bitcoin to dogeZero risk, all upside.bitcoin price 50000@bobbyclee @barrysilbert- Bill Barhydt (@billbarhydt) January 8, 2017From a theoretical standpoint, bitcoin possesses many of the same attributes of gold, which makes it an attractive store of value for central banks.bitcoin conference sf

Specifically: There's a limited supply of bitcoin, it's easy to trade, and its price is not dependent on governments or regular financial markets.Get Data Sheet, Fortune’s technology newsletter.As to whether Asian governments are actually acquiring bitcoin, there is so far no hard proof.But bitcoin investors have long looked nervously at the extensive mining operations in China, which are effectively under control of the government.The prospect of Chinese control, along with the incredible surge in bitcoin's value, is something that could spur the governments of Japan and Korea—where bitcoin is trading higher than anywhere else—to acquire the cryptic currency.Finally, some fear bitcoin is still vulnerable to a so-called 51% attack—an existential threat in which more than half of the world's bitcoin miners join forces, allowing them to manipulate the blockchain records on which all bitcoin transactions are stored.bitcoin facility meaning

Today, such an attack is considered too big for anyone to pull off—except, perhaps, a nation state.National governments jostling for control of bitcoin could also trigger new forms of crime or economic aggression on the Internet.(If that sounds far-fetched, consider how North Korean attackers robbed the central bank of Bangladesh through the SWIFT banking system).For now, all of this is just speculation.bitcoin candlestickIt's entirely possible that what we're seeing is yet another instance of a speculation-fueled bitcoin bubble that will be followed by a crash.earn bitcoin passiveBut if national governments are in the mix, it's a whole new ballgame.buy smtp bitcoinBitcoin is on the rise.ethereum list transactions

Investors can't seem to get enough of the cryptocurrency.It's been driven up yet again for a total gain of 130% this year.It traded above $2,200 on Monday, 9% higher on the day and up 15% from Friday's closing price of $1,913 which was a fresh high at that point.Bitcoin is up 397% from one year ago.And it's not just Bitcoin's price that's rising.best litecoin pool for beginnersMore and more companies appear willing to assume exposure to the volatile digital currency.Soon you might even be able to use them to buy airline tickets from Japanese carrier Peach Aviation, for starters.It’s also become a safe haven currency for political risk.Ironically, right now its biggest group of buyers are Japanese nationals, holders of that other popular safe haven currency, the yen.And here's another irony: of all the agencies trying to rein in irregularities surrounding Bitcoin trading and selling, Japanese regulators are some of the strictest.

Nevertheless, virtual currencies—with Bitcoin currently at the head of the class—are perhaps today's most explosive growth trade.As Fortune recently noted: “If you bought $5 of Bitcoin 7 years ago, you’d be $4.4 million richer.” Too Late To Ride Price Higher?The worst feeling for an investor is that of sitting on the sidelines, watching other people profit.This might be just such an occasion.Or it might be better to wait.Yesterday, Bitcoin's price gapped up 3.10%, climbing an additional 18.57% intraday, though the currency closed 'just' 10.92% higher, at 2149.6299.A rising gap means there were only buyers, no sellers.Traders may see that as a bullish sign.However, not every rising gap is bullish.An area gap, which occurs within a trading range is meaningless, but an exhaustion gap, which may have taken shape yesterday, occurs after an extraordinary rise in price, is actually dangerous.It reflects the irrational exuberance of the participating public (sometimes referred to as 'dumb money'), who come in only after hearing all the good news, but end up buying only after the smart money and trading professionals have already enjoyed the rally.

The unsuspecting public joins at the top, right before the aforementioned smart money—who have already enjoyed and benefited from the crazy ride up—are all in and merely waiting for a good opportunity to come along so they can dump it all on the not-so-smart next buyer.Exhaustion Gap Or Upcoming Buying Opportunity Yesterday’s exhaustion gap is followed today by what may prove to be a hanging man, a candlestick that, with a following confirmation of a lower close, suggests the bulls gave it all they got and the bears are taking over.That psychology would fit perfectly with the psychology of the exhaustion gap.But let’s take a closer look at the 30-minute chart.The price reached a high of 2297.9951 yesterday at 14:00 EDT, but since then it has been unable to make higher highs, putting the trend into question.The relative strength of the price is trending down, as it’s weakening.In addition, stochastics have been oversold and executed a bearish cross, along with trending down overall, like the RSI (relative strength index).

Even if you believe in the long-term future of Bitcoin, you might want to wait for a correction, both in price and momentum.But, since we mentioned the longer term, let’s take a look at Bitcoin's weekly chart.Six consecutive weekly gains!Maybe we should all buy Bitcoin and watch it rise in value, forever.Though we jest, following the herd is not necessarily always a bad thing.It can protect you from predators.Just don’t follow it during a stampede.Wait for a correction.To say that the RSI is oversold is an understatement.It's reached its all-time-high.Stochastics are oversold, threatening a bearish cross and a double bottom.This is the weekly chart, so expect a robust correction if and when it happens.When to get in?Well, that’s anybody’s guess, but since the price may have spiked, we’d be concerned about a blow off.We wouldn’t touch it before price returns to its last uptrend line of late March, at least, which would put it probably at $1650, the support of Bitcoin's May 15 low, when it declined 6.72%.