📈 30 Second Cryptocurrency Price Summary Current Bitcoin Price: $8,775 Bitcoin price has gained a further 2.5% today, reaching highs just under the $8,900 mark. Top-20 altcoins have continued to soar, as Ethereum gains 10% and XRP 7% over the last 24 hours. Bitcoin SV has been the stand-out performer, soaring a whopping 81%. Top Stories for January 15, 2019 🔥 CME Group launched Bitcoin options this week, an instrument which was very highly anticipated by investors around the globe. Active interest in the contracts was no letdown, with over $2.1 million worth of Bitcoin options contracts traded on the very first day. This almost doubled the volume of Bakkt, a competing institutional Bitcoin derivatives exchange. Postech, a prominent university in South Korea, is reported to be utilizing the ICON blockchain to issue blockchain-based graduation diplomas. The initiative will use ICONLOOP's BROOF platform, a service which facilitates the issuance and storage of certifications. Venezuela's president, Nicolas Maduro, has vowed to breathe life into the Petro coin - the country's cryptocurrency. Part of the plan to revive the currency includes beginning to sell up to 50,000 barrels of oil a day in Petros. In the future, he would like all nationally produced oil paid for in the currency, as well as taxes and utility bills. | 