LONDON: Bitcoin, the world’s best-known cryptocurrency, fell 7 per cent on Monday to a fresh two and a half month low of $ 7338 on back of growing worries about a regulatory clampdown and bans on the purchase of the digital coins.
The price of Bitcoin on the Luxembourg-based Bitstamp exchange has now fallen by more than half from a peak of almost $ 20,000 hit in December. Last week it suffered its worst weekly performance since 2013.
Last week’s slump brought the total market value of cryptocurrencies down to around $ 400 billion, half the high it reached in January, according to industry tracker Coinmarketcap.com. When compared with the value of January 28, 2018, when it was around $ 578 billion, the plunge was over $ 150 billion. Predominantly the market value of cryptocurrencies is calculated by multiplying the number of digital coins in existence by their price, although many questions surround the credibility of the method.
British bank Lloyds Banking Group on Sunday said it was banning customers from buying Bitcoin using credit cards. It joined US banking giants JP Morgan Chase & Co and Citigroup who announced similar bans on concerns the lenders could be held liable when the volatile currencies plunge in value.
