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Tuesday, 21 June 2022 01:44 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
LONDON/HONG KONG (Reuters): The cryptocurrency industry was on edge on Monday as bitcoin struggled to stay above a key level, with investors fearing that problems at major crypto players could unleash a wider market shakeout.
Bitcoin, the world’s biggest cryptocurrency, was trading just under the symbolic level of $ 20,000 in early London trading hours – roughly the peak of its charge to its previous record in 2017.
Bitcoin had dropped on Saturday to as low as $ 17,592.78, falling below $ 20,000 for the first time since December 2020.It has lost almost 60% of its value this year and 37% this month alone in the cryptocurrency sector’s latest meltdown.
Its fall follows problems at several major industry players.
Further declines, market players said, could have a knock-on effect as other crypto investors are forced to sell their holdings to meet margin calls and cover losses.
Smaller tokens, which usually move in tandem with bitcoin, were also hurt. No.2 token ether was at $ 1,0752, having dipped below its own symbolic level of $ 1,000 over the weekend.
The fall in crypto markets has coincided with a slide for equities, as US stocks suffered their biggest weekly percentage decline in two years on fears of rising interest rates and the growing likelihood of recession.
Bitcoin’s moves have tended to follow a similar pattern to other risk assets such as tech stocks.
The overall crypto market capitalisation is roughly $ 877 billion, according to price site Coinmarketcap, down from a peak of $ 2.9 trillion in November 2021.
