Bitcoin soars. What is it? How can you buy it? What are the risks?

In 2017, the price of bitcoin saw a similar run-up when within the year speculators drove bitcoin from about $1,200 to its then-high of $19,783. The “great crypto crash’ followed with its value tumbling 80 percent. It languished under $10,000 until July 2020 when bitcoin began to regain strength, fueled by concerns about the federal stimulus program and fears of inflation.