It’s suffered losses of more than 50% since April.
The price of Bitcoin has plummeted below $30,000 as more than half a trillion dollars has been wiped off the cryptocurrency market in just a week.
Just a week ago Bitcoin was trading above $40,000 but the crypto market has now been described as being in “freefall” with a number of other leading cryptocurrencies also seeing a crash in prices. Ethereum, Cardano and dogecoin have all seen a huge drop in prices.
Such is the way with the crypto market and Bitcoin’s dominance over it, the moment Bitcoin suffers, everyone else is dragged down with it.
For the first time since February, the overall market cap of all cryptocurrencies is now below $1.2 trillion. This means that in just seven days half a trillion dollars has been wiped from the market.
Nicholas Cawley from DailyFX, a trading analysis firm, told the Independent: “The crypto market is in freefall with support levels broken with ease…the latest Chinese mining ban is fuelling the move lower but the overall market tone is very negative with little reason to buy the market.
“It’s a guessing game at the moment – will bitcoin be up or down $10k in a month’s time – no-one knows and those who tell you they do know, don’t. We have seen these moves before, and will likely see them again. If you believe in cryptos, and are a holder, your exit strategy has just been pushed further into the distance.”
Meanwhile, founder of decentralised social network Subsocial, Alex Siman, said: “At this rate of fall, it’s difficult to predict the level at which the price will form a baseline for an imminent rebound, as big investors with the potential to reverse prices are choosing to watch from the sideline.
“While we can still see a positive dynamic before the end of this year, to me, steeper plunges to $20,000 won’t come as a surprise either.”
The events of the last week are yet another reminder of how incredibly volatile the world of crypto is. The simple fact of the matter is that the crypto market is still in a place where one tweet from Elon Musk can flip the fortunes of a currency on its head.
The price of Bitcoin and other currencies have been falling since China announced a ban on financial institutions and payment companies from providing services related to cryptocurrency transactions.