Bitcoin hits a new record after climbing another 6% on Monday.

On Tuesday, the price of bitcoin paused before continuing its upward trend.

The second-largest cryptocurrency, which is Bitcoin, advanced 6% to $3,809, according to Coin Metrics. It traded around levels not seen since January 2022. Meanwhile, Bitcoin's rival, Ethereum, rose 1% to $68,833.45 and hit a record high above $69,000.

"The momentum behind ETH is substantial due to its role as a gateway to various meme coins and DeFi platforms that have experienced growth as a result of bitcoin's recent surge in value, according to Li.Fi CEO Philipp Zentner. As history has shown, the adoption of other assets in the ecosystem often follows in the footsteps of bitcoin's success."

Bitcoin has increased by 19% in the past week, while meme coins have experienced a 175% increase during the same period, according to CoinGecko. This suggests that retail investors, who have been largely absent from the recent crypto market rally, are beginning to re-enter the market.

The smart contracts sector has experienced a 17% increase, while NFT coins have risen by 20%. Additionally, decentralized finance tokens have seen an almost 14% increase, and layer 1 tokens, which include bitcoin, ether, and the Solana token, have gained 21% as a group.

"If capital continues to shift towards altcoins, ETH is likely to see gains, although they may not be as significant as coins like Shiba Inu, dogwifhat, Arbitrum, and others," Zentner stated.

Ether, one of two blue-chip cryptocurrencies, usually underperforms bitcoin. On Monday, ether increased by 5%, while bitcoin experienced a 9% rise.

The recent surge in bitcoin and tech stocks, as well as a technical network upgrade this month, has boosted the price of ether by 65% compared to bitcoin's 58% increase.

According to David Wells, CEO of Enclave Markets, investors are likely to see more growth potential in ETH compared to bitcoin due to their relative market cap differences. This is especially true in a world where both ETFs are viewed as an asset class and are continuously allocated by investment advisors and wealth managers.