The Huge Moves In Marathon Patent Group And Riot Blockchain Show Traders Hunger For Bitcoin

Two of the hottest stocks in the market in the past week have been Riot Blockchain Inc RIOT and Marathon Patent Group Inc MARA.

Riot’s stock cooled Monday, falling more than 30 percent, after going on an incredible run. Marathon shares surged 40 percent on Monday, a possible indication that it could be following in Riot’s footprints.

The common denominator between the two stocks has been one of the hottest trades in the world in 2017—cryptocurrency.

Change In Direction?

Back in October, diagnostic machinery biotech stock Biopix Inc. changed its name to Riot Blockchain and announced it would be pivoting its business to cryptocurrency. Earlier this month, Riot announced the purchase of 3,200 bitcoin mining machines.

Traders have piled into the stock, which is now up a whopping 215 percent since Oct. 1 and 103 percent in the past five trading sessions.

Marathon Patent invests in patents and patent applications and currently holds 378 U.S. and foreign patents and 22 patent applications. On Nov. 2, Marathon Patent announced a buyout of digital mining company Global Bit Ventures, Inc.

Once again, traders are rewarding the bet on cryptocurrency by sending the stock higher by 482 percent in the past five sessions. The higher the price of bitcoin goes, the more profitable these mining ventures could theoretically be.

Traders Hungry For Action

Neither company has given any indication it is abandoning its prior businesses and assets. However, investors are seemingly so desperate to get in on the cryprocurrency craze that they are buying up anything that can be tied to cryptocurrency technology. With market caps of $151 million and $68 million, respectively, Riot and Marathon stocks have relatively small floats, meaning large surges in volume can result in huge spikes in share price.

Limited Options

Stock traders have few avenues for trading bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies at the moment. The SEC has so far denied major U.S. listings for bitcoin ETFs due to concerns over the currency’s lack of regulation.

The Bitcoin Investment Trust GBTC, which trades on the OTC market, is up 933 percent in 2017 alone.

Related Links:

Why Marathon Patent Group Is Considered A Crypto, Blockchain, And AI Play

Standpoint Research Raises Bitcoin Target To $14,000