Have you pulled open your retirement account statement recently? If you are like a lot of Americans, you probably don’t even want to look at it a lot lately. It is something that some people are literally afraid to open because they are worried about how much their retirement account may have fallen. Those who have invested in Bitcoin in 2016 are resting a little easier though. Why? Because they have seen the value of the cyber currency rise by 50% in just the first half of 2016.

Considering the fact that a good year for a mutual fund is a 12 to 15% return, a 50% return in just one half of one year is outstanding. Of course, the currency does not always go up in value, but as of late more and more people are realizing the value of an alternative currency such as Bitcoin, and they are clamoring to buy up some for themselves.

Bitcoin as a currency often experiences huge spikes in value like this over short periods of time. The thing has only been around for a handful of years, but this 50% climb in the last six months is nothing new. In fact, some point out that it climbed more than 63% in the last six months of 2016. Therefore, a 50% climb in this currency is actually a little lower than similar periods recently. That is amazing because for almost any other type of investment, this would be considered a huge rise in value.

A large factor in the rise of value for Bitcoin has to do with uncertainty in the wider world. There have been numerous news story that have come out just recently which are contributing to the increase in value. For example, when the British voted to exit the European Union, this sent the currency markets into a tailspin. It is still rather unclear as to how that will all play out. With that kind of uncertainty, many people are looking for safer waters such as Bitcoin.

Many more businesses are now accepting Bitcoin as a means for paying for goods. This is particular true of online businesses, but it is not limited to the virtual world. Starbucks made a splash by being an early adopter of accepting Bitcoin as a means of payment for their product. Many other companies are following along the same lines as time goes on. If they receive payment in Bitcoin and the trends in the currency continue, that can be quite a boon in value for the companies as well.

Finally, Bitcoin may just be a great investment for some because it provides the opportunity to diversify. Basically, most people get their money tied up into stocks, bonds, annuities, and maybe some real estate. It is often not diversified enough for them to withstand a big hit to their domestic economy. Since those types of downturns really can happen, why not have something socked away in an alternative investment? That seems to be the thinking of more and more people as the money continues to flood into the Bitcoin market. It may just be the most opportune time to get started with this currency.

Market forecasters can only attempt to predict what they think may happen with the currency next, and there is no way to know for sure, but the past has been bright with this one, and many believe the best is yet to come.