Bitcoin hit a new all-time high today, soaring past its previous record hitting $3,793.86 before sliding back, as one bitcoin is currently worth $3,744.56, according to data from CoinMarketCap.

The cryptocurrency’s new record pushes its market cap to $61.7 billion, with the entire cryptocurrency ecosystem now being worth $132 billion. During the last 24 hours, bitcoin’s value surged by 7.44% as its dominance is now at 46.49%.

Back in July, Goldman Sachs’ chief technical analyst Sheba Jafari accurately predicted that bitcoin’s price would pull back to about $1,850, before setting a new record high. According to his prediction, the cryptocurrency could go as a far as $3,915 before it stops surging.

Some predict that bitcoin might soon hit a new milestone: $4,000. Although it isn’t clear what will happen next, there are some identifiable factors behind bitcoin’s climb.

Rising tensions between the U.S. and North Korea

According to the South China Morning Post, some investors are using cryptocurrencies as a safe haven, as the war of words between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korea intensifies.

Investors are turning to cryptocurrencies, as their independence from any central authority is a safeguard against central banks and governments, meaning that if North Korea and the U.S. enter a military conflict, bitcoin won’t suffer from possible outcomes such as high inflation, a weakened currency, or capital controls.

Recently, North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un threatened to fire four intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) to the U.S. island of Guam, in the Western Pacific. As a response, Donald Trump stated that he will “regret it fast” if he further threats the U.S. Various countries, including Canada, asked the two nations to de-escalate the situation.

Bitfinex suspends U.S. verification requests

Popular cryptocurrency exchange Bitfinex recently announced that it will no longer accept U.S. clients. According to the announcement, the exchange will suspend individual verification requests.

The exchange added that the move has been considered before, but now that is it having difficulties providing USD deposits and withdrawals for U.S. citizens, it believes the time has come to stop accepting U.S. clients.

It reads:

“We regret to announce that, effective immediately, we will no longer be accepting verification requests for U.S. individuals. We have for some time considered pulling away from the retail marketplace in the U.S., and now with a current backlog of verification requests and ongoing difficulties in providing USD deposit and withdrawals for U.S. individuals, we feel that the time has come to begin disengaging from U.S. retail customers.”

Among the factors that led to the decision, Bitfinex revealed that a large portion of its resources go to U.S. customers, while only a small percentage of the revenues come from them.

The move effectively limits liquidity and creates a sense of scarcity, which further leads to a bullish market.

Featured image from Shutterstock.