Bitcoin was higher for a second day, staying in a range of between roughly $15,200 and $15,600, as news of progress in developing a coronavirus vaccine appeared to touch off a rally in U.S. stocks.

Bitcoin gained Wednesday while Ethereum 2.0 staking has been ramping up.

A senior analyst at U.S.-based financial giant Citibank has penned a report drawing on similarities between the 1970s gold market and bitcoin.

A Citibank managing director thinks bitcoin could hit $318,000.

Bitcoin is knocking at the gates of $17,000 while Ethereum's transaction growth in 2020 is a positive indicator of future financial use cases.

According to analysis from Edward Morra, a popular Bitcoin trader, Coinbase and Bitfinex exchange now have major buy orders above $17,200.

"Some countries, like China, are looking at issuing government digital currencies, which would encourage swift adoption, but is not faithful to the decentralized spirit of crypto."