A little known altcoin called omicron is surging as the new coronavirus variant makes headlines

• A little-known altcoin called omicron surged to a record high as the new coronavirus variant make headlines.
• The price of omicron, whose ticker is omic, peaked at $689.12 on Monday, according to CoinGecko data.

A little-known altcoin called omicron surged to a record high as the new coronavirus variant with the same name made headlines.

The price of omicron, whose ticker is omic, peaked at $689.12 on Monday, according to CoinGecko data. That means the coin soared as much as 960% from the time the World Health Organization labeled the new variant Friday, when it was hovering just around $65.

On Monday, the digital asset was trading at $162.14 as of 8:31 a.m. ET, roughly 76% lower from its all-time high.

The altcoin has no connection to the B.1.1.529 strain other than its shared name, the 15th letter of the Greek alphabet.

The coin, a decentralized reserve currency protocol that runs on the ethereum layer-two network arbitrum, is backed by several assets, such as stablecoin USD coin, according to an explainer. It is listed solely on decentralized exchange SushiSwap.

And unlike other coins that were borne out of phenomenal events — such as the Squid Game token — omicron already existed before the emergence of the COVID-19 variant last week.

CoinGecko, for instance, has been tracking it since November 11. The crypto data aggregator, however, does not provide further details of the coin's circulating supply or market capitalization.

While the coin has a website, a Twitter account (joined October 2021), and a discord account, little else is known about it.

"Omicron is a clear sign of a bubble, and while it might be a good way to make a quick return, it is not a good buying option for the long-term investors," Freddie Evans, sales trader at digital asset broker GlobalBlock told Insider Monday.

Altcoins, in general, have rallied in the past weeks as retail investors direct their attention to newer and lesser-known coins, such as shiba inu and dogecoin, which are increasingly becoming popular for their hefty gains compared to more established assets, like bitcoin.