Mike Novogratz said yesterday that he would be adding if Ether dropped near $200, and as it did overnight, a bid appeared and helped by positive comments in a World Economic Forum whitepaper on "realizing the potential of blockchain," Ethereum has exploded higher, topping $300.

Quite a reversal...

While the catalyst is unknown, CoinTelegraph reports that The World Economic Forum (WEF) today published a dedicated Blockchain report detailing how the technology will flow into the global economy.

Described as a white paper, Realizing the Potential of Blockchain provides background and suggestions as to how Blockchain will propagate throughout the world’s infrastructure. From business to regulation, how disruptive innovation can be harnessed is forming an increasingly debated topic for international enterprises. “This report helps us to understand that a distributed blockchain ecosystem need not be a disorganized one, and improved governance need not imply formal governmental legislation or regulation,” WEF Managing Board Member Richard Samans commented in a press release about the white paper. While the WEF is often synonymous with the phrase “distributed ledger” - a euphemism for centralized private Blockchains popular with major financial institutions - the cryptocurrency community was also broadly receptive to the white paper’s content. “This report will provide enormous value to technology companies, government agencies, NGOs and user organizations everywhere,” Chamber of Digital Commerce President Perianne Boring said. “...Anyone who cares about the future of the blockchain ecosystem should read this report and heed its wisdom.”

Full document below...

However, the crowd of naysyers builds, as CoinTelegraph reports Aberdeen Asset Management is the latest to argue that like all bubbles, the virtual currency bubble will eventually burst too.

Bubble-like Characteristics

The growth in the valuation of cryptocurrencies in 2017 has been unprecedented. Bitcoin price has more than tripled in value, going from $900 in Jan 2017, to over $2,700 as of now.

This pales in comparison to Ethereum’s gains. Ether price has risen from ~$8 in January 2017, to $350 currently, a gain of over 4000 percent. Other cryptocurrencies too have risen multifold in value, leading to natural apprehensions of a cryptocurrency bubble.

Gold Rush Mindset

Aberdeen believes that we are currently in the midst of a cryptocurrency bubble and its bursting is inevitable. Speaking to Bloomberg, Peter Denious, head of global venture capital at Aberdeen Asset Management Plc, said:

“Prices right now aren’t being driven by network usage, they’re being driven by speculation that tokens are going to appreciate. It’s a gold-rush mentality.”

The proliferation of ICOs and the rapid increase in the price of tokens upon listing is one of the indicators of a bubble. Companies in the Blockchain space seem to have no difficulties in raising money quickly through ICOs, even if they do not have a proven or unique idea behind their token.