Bitcoin exploded to an all-time high on Friday morning. The cryptocurrency surged more than $120 to a record high of $1,327 a coin shortly before 8:30 a.m. ET. While bitcoin has pulled back from its record peak, it remains firmly bid, up 8.3%, or $99, at $1,291.

Friday's gains come ahead of the highly anticipated US Securities and Exchange Commission ruling on whether or not it will approve at least one of the three proposed bitcoin-focused exchange-traded funds by a March 11 deadline. Because that deadline falls on a Saturday, a decision may not be announced until Monday, March 13.

Bitcoin has had a volatile start to 2017. It gained more than 20% in the opening week of the year before crashing 35% on rumblings China would begin to crack down on trading. But the cryptocurrency has been able to shrug off news that China's biggest exchanges started to charge a flat fee of 0.2% per transaction in addition to them blocking customer withdrawals.

Bitcoin gained 120% in 2016 and has been the top performing currency in each of the past two years.