CRYPTO INSIDER: A rush of companies are pivoting to blockchain

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Pivoting to blockchain is proving to be lucrative for some otherwise unheard of companies. This morning it was The Long Island Iced Tea Corporation and a British video game company. The growing trend is reminding some people of the dot-com bubble of the late 1990's.

Here's the scoreboard as of Thursday morning:

• Bitcoin (BTC): $16,234.70 (-1.42%)
• Ethereum (ETH): $813.44 (+1.98%)
• Bitcoin Cash (BCC): $3,222.08 (-11.82%)
• Ripple (XRP): $1.05 (+47.80%)
• Litecoin (LTC): $304 (+0.74%)

What's happening:

1. Bitcoin has "all the hallmarks of a bubble," UBS said. However, the Swiss bank is more bullish on the underlying blockchain technology.
2. Tether, a US dollar-linked cryptocurrency that was hit with a $31 million attack last month, is pushing back against criticism, calling it "uninformed and baseless."
3. Legendary trader and director of floor operations for UBS, Art Cashin, just sent out his annual Wall Street Christmas poem. As usual, he mentioned some of the year's financial highlights such as the exploding value of bitcoin.
4. The New York Stock Exchange has made its first major foray into the nascent digital coin space with two new ETF's.
5. Ari Paul, CIO of cryptocurrency hedge fund BlockTower Capital, laid out the three biggest risks of investing in cryptocurrencies.

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