Bitcoin, Ethereum, Other Cryptocurrencies Are Dropping in Value

By Edward Leano, Christian Post Contributor Wednesday, January 17, 2018

Owners of bitcoin, ethereum, and other cryptocurrencies are probably not too happy right now, with nothing but bleak news for crypto holders these past few days. The entire cryptocurrency market itself is in a slide, as values continue to drop by double-digit percentage figures.

The top 20 cryptocurrencies, in particular, made up a huge chunk of the hundreds of billions lost over Tuesday, Jan. 16, according to figures from crypto tracking website CoinMarketCap.com. At its steepest, Tuesday's slide lost some $200 billion in overall market capitalization across all currencies.

In less than 24 hours, the crypto market dropped from a $710 billion market cap to $536 billion at the bottom of the slump. This trend continues as of this time, with overall capitalization now at $506 billion as of Wednesday, Jan. 17.

Bitcoin, the original and still the world's leading cryptocurrency in terms of market cap, has plunged by 14 percent that day, as Coindesk points out. At its lowest point earlier, bitcoin has dropped to as low as $11,182 before bouncing back. On Wednesday, it continues its slide as it dips to $10,855, with no bottom in sight so far.

This slump could possibly go beyond the crypto value dive late last month, in December, when bitcoin fell to as low as $10,800. Overall market value dropped more than $200 billion that time too, with this week looking to be a repeat of what happened late last year.

Most of the drop-off has been attributed to tightening regulations in South Korea, as Business Insider notes. Cryptocurrency markets in South Korea and Japan are notable in the sense that tokens are generally priced at a premium in those regions, and with regulatory pressure, traders in both countries may have been prompted to sell off.

"This morning, the combined volume from these two top cryptotrading countries dropped below 30%. Looks like they're tired of overpaying for cryptos and waiting for the market to even out," Mati Greenspan, an analyst at the trading platform eToro, noted earlier.