Everyone who assumed Bitcoin would be the only major cryptocurrency to note big price gains in the final weeks of 2017 was gravely mistaken. We now see all major altcoins trying to make a name for themselves by bouncing back. The Ethereum Classic price, for example, has increased by as much as 50% overnight. To some people, this is organic growth, whereas others see it as the pump-and-dump cycle that it probably is. Still, it is a remarkable development, to say the least.

Ethereum Classic Price Explodes Overnight

While most investors keep pouring money into Ethereum these days, it has become rather evident that one shouldn’t discount Ethereum Classic by any means. It may not have the global appeal of Ethereum, yet it is the only immutable blockchain of the two. It was only a matter of time before the Ethereum Classic price started going up in value again. After a few weeks of hovering near the US$17 mark, things have certainly exploded over the past 24 hours.

More specifically, we have seen an Ethereum Classic price increase of just over 50% in the past day. That is remarkable growth, to say the least, especially considering no one we know of saw this coming whatsoever. Things have been somewhat quiet on the ETC front as of late, but it seems investors and speculators are throwing a lot of money at this altcoin right now. Maintaining this trend will be pretty difficult, though, especially once the trading volume starts drying up once again.

It is also important to note that the Ethereum Classic price is not just rising against USD. The altcoin is making up a lot of ground against Bitcoin as well, with a 45.25% 24-hour gain visible on the charts right now. All of this is rather surprising, as the Bitcoin price is pretty close to breaching US$10,000. At the same time, a lot of people are only now diversifying their portfolios to include Ethereum Classic as well as some other altcoins which have been undervalued for quite some time now.

Thanks to almost US$1.5 billion in 24-hour trading volume, we may see the Ethereum Classic price continue to surge for some time to come. The recent price gain is significant already, but the markets may help push the value of ETC to US$40 in the coming hours. Rest assured a lot of people will start taking profits in the coming hours as well. Seeing one’s investment go up by 50% in short order is always a strong sell signal.

Anyone guessing that Bithumb is the main driver of Ethereum Classic trading would be absolutely correct. However, Coinone and Korbit are also putting their weight behind this pump cycle. Bitfinex is the only non-Korean exchange among the top four ranked by 24-hour trading volume, and it comfortably sits in third place as of right now. Rest assured this pump will turn into a dump sooner or later when the volume switches from buying to selling. Then again, a lot of altcoins are going up in value right now, and things may play out very differently from what one would expect.

The final few weeks of 2017 will be pretty spectacular for pretty much all cryptocurrencies. There are still a few undervalued coins among the top 10, as well as a few currencies which should never have reached their current valuations in the first place. How things will play out between now and December 31 remains to be seen. The year 2017 has been pretty solid for all cryptocurrencies, and we can only hope to see more of the same throughout 2018.