GOLDMAN SACHS: Bitcoin could get close to $8,000

Lucas Jackson/Reuters

A trader looks up at charts on his screen just before the end of trading for the day on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, November 18, 2013.

• Bitcoin touched a record high of $7,592 a coin on Monday.
• Goldman Sachs' head of technical analysis says the chart points to a possible run at the $8,000 level.

Goldman Sachs thinks bitcoin still has more room to run.

The red-hot cryptocurrency, which has gained more than 600% this year and is currently trading near $7,200 a coin, could threaten the $8,000 mark, according to a note sent out to clients on Monday from Goldman Sachs technical head Sheba Jafari.

"It exceeded an equality target from the July low at 6,044," Jafari wrote. "This break indicated potential for an impulsive advance, one that could reach at least 7,941. This is the minimum target for a 3rd of 5-waves up and should therefore be a level from which to watch for signs of a consolidation."

Goldman Sachs

The cryptocurrency put in an all-time high of $7,592 a coin early Monday as traders continue to pile in following the announcement that CME Group, one of the world's largest exchange groups, was launching bitcoin futures trading by the end of the year. Bitcoin has gained more than $1,000 since the November 1 announcement.

The gains also come as traders await the implementation of a looming fork in bitcoin's network.

Disagreements in the cryptocurrency community over an upgrade known as SegWit2x could split bitcoin into two more cryptocurrencies. Bitcoin has already forked into bitcoin cash and bitcoin gold.

Another fork would double the amount of coins for people who hold them on an exchange or in a wallet backing the fork. Trevor Koverko, the CEO of Polymath, a cryptocurrency technology company, told Business Insider that folks could be buying in before the fork to get that free cash.

"Speculation on this free money is driving up the price," he said. "Smart traders are riding the wave and will pull out before the fork."

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