NEW YORK–Those headlines about skyrocketing values of Bitcoin now seem so 2017.
The price of the cryptocurrency declined by about 30% during January, which would be its worst monthly drop in three years, according to research site Coindesk.
The price of Bitcoin fell below $10,000 on Wednesday, a two-month low. That figure is close to half its one-time high of nearly $20,000, which it hit in mid-December 2017.
“The plunge is noteworthy even by Bitcoin’s standards,” reported Coindesk. “While it’s been known to lose over a quarter of its market value in the span of a day, those declines have typically been short lived. Over the past five years, Bitcoin has fallen by over 30% in a given month only three other times, the latest in January 2015.”
Coindesk noted that while several factors have been driving the decline, the regulatory clampdown occurring around the world is an important reason the broader cryptocurrency market has fallen on tougher times.
Earlier this week the SEC stopped a $600-million initial coin offering, while the federal government brought charges in three cases involving virtual currencies. In addition, Facebook announced it would stop all ads on its platform that promote cryptocurrencies and initial coin offerings.
As CUToday.info has reported, governments around the world, including China and South Korea, have taken steps to limit bitcoin mining operations, and have also announced additional regulatory scrutiny.