Bitcoin surged to an all-time high above $1,400 yesterday, after more than tripling in value over the past year, with its most recent rise attributed to strong demand in Japan, where the digital currency has been deemed a legal means of payment.

Cryptocompare, a data website that analyses bitcoin trading across dozens of exchanges globally, said around 50 per cent of trading volume over the past 24 hours had been on the bitcoin/Japanese yen exchange rate.

Reports said that Chinese authorities have increased scrutiny of exchanges this year and have forced them tostart charging trading fees, after be-coming concerned about bitcoin speculation and its potential use in money laundering.

Bitcoin surged as much as three per cent yesterday on the Europe-based Bitstamp exchange, where trading is dollar-denominated, to hit $1,437, its highest since its 2008 launch.

That marked a more than 200 per cent increase from its price in early May last year.

Its current levels put the total value of all bitcoins in circulation – the so-called “market cap” – close to $25 billion, putting its worth on a par with a large-cap company.

Bitcoin analysts said the price had also been boosted by a request by the BATS exchange that the United States Securities and Exchange Commission review its March decision not to approve a bitcoin-tracking ETF set up by the Winklevoss brothers.