Bitcoin Crash: Bitcoin drops below $9000, BTC loses more than $1000 as Bitfinex and Tether threatens 80% price crash

Bitcoin Crash: Bitcoin drops below $9000, BTC loses $700 as Tether TANTRUM threatens 80% price crash. BITCOIN has fallen below the symbolic $10,000 mark following the controversy over cryptocurrency tether – a unique digital coin, bought and valued like-for-like with the US Dollar – being artificially propped up by a widely used exchange called Bitfinex.

Cryptocurrency exchanges Bitfinex and Tether being subpoenaed by US regulators in December

Bitcoin briefly drops below $9,000

  • Bitcoin price briefly drops below $9,000 per coin on Thursday afternoon.
  • It bounced back a little, but remained more than 10% lower on the day.
  • Recent falls are largely down to market fears after reports that cryptocurrency exchanges Bitfinex and Tether being subpoenaed by US regulators in December.
  • Bitcoin also seems to be negatively impacted on the day by a speech from India’s finance minister, in which he said that the country’s government doesn’t recognise bitcoin as legal tender.
  • Bitcoin briefly dropped below $9,000 per coin on Thursday afternoon, having earlier broken below the psychologically significant $10,000 level for the third time in two weeks.

The cryptocurrency has hovered around the $10,00 mark for most of the week, yoyoing between sub- and plus-line frequently.

Most recently, on Wednesday it fell below $10,000 after reports that cryptocurrency exchanges Bitfinex and Tether being subpoenaed by US regulators in December dragged down prices.

It seems as though those concerns are still impacting the market, and on Thursday afternoon, it dropped below $9,000, before rapidly recovering to plus-$9,000, as the chart below shows:

Concerns have been swirling in the cryptocurrency market for months about the status of Tether, a cryptocurrency issued by Tether Limited. It plays a central role in the operation of many leading cryptocurrency exchanges, including Bitfinex, but there is speculation that the company behind it may not hold the dollar reserves it claims.

Mati Greenspan, an analyst at eToro, believes the crypto markets are overreacting to the Tether news, saying in an email: “Several clients have already approached me asking what the ramifications could be, but honestly, I really don’t see the big deal.”

“Firstly, the US Government has been creating USD out of thin air for the better part of the last decade without having any major negative impact on the Dollar’s price or it’s ability to be used as a medium of exchange.” “Secondly, even if market players do lose confidence in Tether and it goes to zero, what’s the worst-case scenario for Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies? All it means is that alternative investors will prefer to rotate out of Tether and into other coins.”

India’s speech about cryptocurrencies

Bitcoin also seems to be negatively impacted on the day by a speech from India’s finance minister, in which he said that the country’s government doesn’t recognise bitcoin as legal tender.

“The government does not recognise cryptocurrency as legal tender or coin and will take all measures to eliminate the use of these cryptoassets in financing illegitimate activities or as part of the payments system,” Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said in his budget speech.

Elsewhere in the crypto markets, ethereum is down 0.5% to trade at $1,100, while Ripple’s XRP is around 9% lower. / Business Insider

8.54pm Bitcoin now lies at $9,078

Bitcoin has now bounced back over the $9,000 mark. In typical bitcoin style it is proving to be a volatile currency.

8.36pm Bitcoin is now valued at $8,990.

Bitcoin seems to be dropping consistently now as CoinMarketCap currently shows all but one of the cryptocurrency falling in price.

If you are a bitcoin investor having a bad night here is a quote from Bill Gates that may cheer you up a bit.

Mr Gates co-founder of Microsoft said: “Bitcoin is better than currency in that you don’t have to be physically in the same place and, of course, for large transactions, currency can get pretty inconvenient.”

7.52pm – UPDATE – Nearly $50 billion wiped off cryptocurrency in worst month

Bitcoin experienced a loss of nearly $50billion from its market capitalisation during January this year in one of its worst-performing months.

Last year the price of bitcoin rose more than 1,000 percent but a crash in the cryptocurrency wiped off nearly $50 billion from bitcoin’s market cap in January alone.

Fawad Razaqzada, an analyst at FOREX.com, said: “Sentiment towards cryptocurrencies is turning sour with negative headlines pouring out from left, right and centre.”

6.56pm -UPDATE – Bitcoin experiences 11 per cent drop in price

Bitcoin dropped 11 percent today to its lowest price since November as a Facebook ban on cryptocurrency adverts and an increasing crackdown frightened investors.

Thursday’s drop to as low as $9,022 on the Luxembourg-based Bitstamp exchange left bitcoin trading at less than half the peak price of almost $20,000 it reached in December.

Other cryptocurrencies, including Ripple, the third-largest by market value, and Bitcoin Cash, have also racked up double-digit declines in the last 24 hours, according to Coinmarketcap.com, which tracks the industry. Ethereum was up slightly on the day.

4.56pm – UPDATE – Enel has announced it has no interest in providing energy for bitcoin mining

Europe’s biggest power utility companies Enel has taken a stand against the energy-hungry industry of mining cryptocurrencies, saying it has “no interest whatsoever in selling power” for the purpose.

The Italian company said it had reached the decision after careful study and analysis.

Enel said: “Enel has undertaken a clear path towards decarbonisation and sustainable development and sees the intensive use of energy dedicated to cryptocurrency mining as an unsustainable practice that does not fit with the business model it is pursuing.”

3.10pm – UPDATE – Kodak shares have fallen after delaying the release of its own cryptocurrency

Originally, it was announced that investors could start buying into the initial coin offering (ICO) on January 31, for the KodakCoin the company’s own cryptocurrency.

This has now been delayed and the company has said the process could now take several weeks.

A statement on Kodak’s website blamed the delay on the need to verify each investor. It said: ”With over 40,000 potential investors expressing an interest in the ICO, we are now moving into the ‘accredited investor’ phase.”

Additional reporting by Darius McQuaid

2.39pm – UPDATE – Australian airport to accept Bitcoin

Brisbane Airport is set to become the planet’s first aviation hub to accept bitcoin, dash, steem, litecoin and ethereum – after signing an agreement with tourism company TravelbyBit Australia.

The small peice of good news is unlikely to change the general movement of bitcoin, which is heading south, and fast.

Bitcoin has reduced its loses to $700 on the day so far, with the price now at $9,427.

1.53pm – UPDATE – Massive losses

Bitcoin has now shed $975 of its worth as concern over tether manipulation and negative noises coming from India send the price south.

Bitcoin is currently at $9,206.

Ripple has dropped to $0.98 a loss of 13 percent.

12.45pm – UPDATE – Bitcoin falls $865

Bitcoin has dropped to $9,320, a fall of $865 on the day so far.

Ripple is down at $1.2 an 11 percent fall on the day so far.

Ethereum is up on the day at $1,117.

11.38am – UPDATE – Ripple takes bit hit

Ripple is down to $1.6.

10.52am – UPDATE – India’s finance minister says goverment – ‘does not recognise cryptocurrency as legal tender’

Bitcoin has now fallen to $9,499 a $666 loss on the day so far.

Indian finance minster Arun Jaitley used his budget speech today to slam cryptocurrencies and promise that his right-wing BJP government will do everything to discontinue the use of bitcoin and other virtual currencies in India.

Mr Jaitley repeated that India does not recognise digital currencies as legal tender.

He said: “The government does not recognise cryptocurrency as legal tender or coin and will take all measures to eliminate the use of these cryptoassets in financing illegitimate activities or as part of the payments system”.

Monish Panda, founder of Monish Panda & Associates law firm told Quartz: “The government will now either come out with a legislative mechanism or make suitable amendment in existing legislation to ensure that dealing and trading in cryptocurrency is made illegal and to penalise entities and individuals who are involved in their trade and circulation.

“We will have to wait and watch as to what will be the final framework of such legislation.”

Read the full report here.

9.49am – UPDATE – Bitcoin suffers “worst monthly decline since January 2015”

Bitcoin has fallen to $9639, a loss of $526 on the day so far.

Alas, many had hoped for better news this February but said good news is yet to arrive.

In January, bitcoin was hammered by the “worst monthly decline since January 2015” which has seen the value plummet from a peak of almost £14,000 ($20,000) last year to a new 2018 low this week.

Bitcoin price WARNING: CEO says cryptocurrency has ‘NOTHING to do with the real economy’

BITCOIN has come under fire from the CEO of Euronext as the financial expert claimed the cryptocurrency “has nothing to do with the real economy”.
Bitcoin price suffered a massive plunge as the cryptocurrency reached the value of $9,114.56, according to Coindesk at 10:37 pm on February 1.

As the crypto-craze started to die down, Euronext CEO Stéphane Boujnah claims bitcoin cannot even be classified as a cryptocurrency.

Speaking on Bloomberg, Mr Boujnah said Euronext will never open a bitcoin market.

He said: “We will not create a bitcoin market because the mandate of Euronext is to power Pan-European capital markets to finance the real economy and bitcoin has nothing to do with the real economy.

“Bitcoin has a lot to do with bitcoin. And we believe bitcoin is not a cryptocurrency.

“Bitcoin is at best a crypto asset. All currencies are assets but not all assets are currencies.

“Clearly, bitcoin today is just like a piece of art, or just like a diamond, just like a Pokemon card.

“It can be anything to capture value but today people buy it because it goes up and because it’s not as serious and transparent as a lot of assets.

“So great, good luck. Like any emerging assets, it’s very fancy, which is great, but this is not our mandate.

“Our mandate is to be the place regulated, transparent, open, reliable. It’s not our mandate to be part of this new game in town.”

Despite the rollercoaster few months suffered by the crypto mania, bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies such as Ripple and ethereum still benefit from a “growing” appreciation among institutional investors, according to Dr Garrick Hileman, from the Cambridge University Centre for Alternative Finance.

Adam Webb is editor in Smartereum, blockchain and currency news, where he produces updates on Blockchain, Ethereum and other alternative cryptocurrencies.

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