The price of Bitcoin has skyrocketed in 2020-21, even surging to an all-time high of $61,000 in March '21. The stock rallied particularly after Tesla announced investing $1.5 billion in Bitcoin. This was further consolidated by Elon Musk's tweet this week that people could now buy a Tesla using the cryptocurrency.

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But do you know there is one metal doing far better than even Bitcoin? Iridium, a by-product of platinum extraction, used especially in the electronics and chemical industries, has surged a staggering 131 percent since January '21. That's a gain of almost 50 percent more than that of Bitcoin's 85 percent.

John Plassard, an analyst with investment house Mirabaud, told AFP last week that the ultra-rare metal is used in several industries, for it has a high melting point and hardly corrodes. Therefore, iridium becomes particularly significant for mobile phones and hydrogen fuel cells. It is also said to be a key element in the transition from fuel to electric vehicles.

An ounce of iridium could currently cost up to $6000. Its value has tripled over the last four months and the primary reason for it is a limited supply. Fall in the demand for platinum has also had an impact on iridium, which, as explained earlier, is mined with it.

"The market for iridium... is not very liquid so its price can shoot up if there are no sellers," German refiner Heraeus has said.

Meanwhile, SFA Oxford, the world's leading authority on platinum-group metals (PGMs), has said that minor PGMs such as ruthenium and iridium will be on the top when it comes to the average price performance in 2022.

Stephen Forrest, SFA Oxford executive chairman, said that since more people were likely to opt for electric vehicles now, the demand for platinum and palladium would be lower. "Therefore, relative to the overall basket, the minor metals iridium and ruthenium were likely to outperform price-wise," he said.

Also Read: Buying Tesla using Bitcoins? Be prepared to shell out huge taxes

First Published:Mar 27, 2021 9:54 AM IST