The world’s cryptocurrency is currently worth more than $1 trillion, with bitcoin accounting for a huge majority of the value. The cost of probably the oldest virtual currency has risen to almost $40,000, pushing the value of all bitcoins in circulation up to much more than $700 billion.

The total cryptocurrency market capitalization – a major bellwether for the all around health of the digital asset class – broke one trillion for the first time ever at 19:00 ET on Tuesday January 6th. Bitcoin briefly topped $37,000 around the same time, marking a new record high.

The surge continued into Friday, with Bitcoin valued at over $41,000 as of press time. Which means that value of Bitcoin has risen by more than 400 percent over the last year. Interest in the virtual currency has been especially high over the last month, during which time its value has more than doubled. The interest has reportedly been driven by investor’s desire for an alternative asset not tied to a central bank, unlike the dollar or even euro. Of course, that interest may or may not last. If nothing else, cryptocurrency has proven itself to be extremely volatile in recent years. The value of Bitcoin, for example, crashed from $19,000 to $3,200 between 2017 and 2018.

If the past year has proven anything, it’s that cryptocurrencies have a lot more long lasting power than the naysayers thought. And that a summary of the best cryptocurrencies to invest in is most certainly a worthwhile endeavor.

While the recent surge in Bitcoin value is actually great news investors, this is particularly true for Satoshi Nakamoto. The inventor of the virtual currency is thought to own one million Bitcoin. If true, Ars Technica reports that the investment would put his net worth at more than $40 billion. That would make him one of the 35 richest people in the world, based on the Bloomberg’s Billionaire Index.

While bitcoin is undoubtedly playing a huge role in these movements, they are also being driven by alternative cryptocurrencies, known as altcoins, making significant gains. In the last five days Ethereum, XRP, stellar, chainlink, litecoin, bitcoin cash, tezos and cardano have each provided returns in excess of 20%. The headliner is stellar, which gained 138%. If bitcoin continues to climb, perhaps aided by additional stimulus measures following the inauguration of Joseph Biden as the 46th president of the United States USM , altcoins could be poised for additional future growth as they typically follow bitcoin’s lead.