'BITCOIN BUYS! EXTREME'

Hong Kong : With bitcoin prices up 17-fold this year and sitting above the US$ 16,000 mark,  valuations-

For the cryptocurrency are in ''extreme'' territory, according to BlackRock Inc.

''We are seeing sort of  bubble-like valuations,'' Belinda Boa, the money manager's head of active investments for Asia-Pacific, told reporters here.

''BlackRock's view is that this isn't a financial asset like we would trade in terms of equities and fixed-income instruments.''

BlackRock joins other major financial services forms which have weighed in on bitcoin's meteoric rise this year amid increasing mainstream acceptance.

Bitcoin futures contracts made their debut on Cboe Global Markets Inc's exchange late on Sunday, and CME Group Inc is set to launch similar products on December 18.

''The higher valuations go, the more likely we are to see some volatility in that space,'' said Boa.

''What we're seeing in bitcoin, and some of the other cryptocurrencies, are huge moves in asset prices.

''I would therefore expect that we will see at lot more volatility in the future.''