Bitcoin BTCUSD, -0.17% has, for good reason, dominated the financial headlines lately, but its sizzling performance over the past month pales compared with what’s happening in another corner of the crypto market.

IOTA, which bills itself as the “backbone” of the internet-of-things economy, has seen a surge of almost 800% since early November, with most of the gains logged in the past few days. This chart puts the move into perspective: