Bitcoin plummets to record low since January as China imposes fresh ban on cryptocurrencies
May 19, 2021591 views0 comments
Wale Ameen
Online Editor
Taking a big hit, world most popular bitcoin this Wednesday further took a dive into the red amidst fresh clampdown on crypto-currencies by China.
The cryptocurrency has fallen to a record low of $34,000 for the first time in the last three months.
Beijing influenced the dip on Tuesday as it announced that it was placing a ban on financial institutions and payment companies from providing services connected to cryptocurrency transactions.
It announced also that investors should be wary of engaging in speculative crypto trading.
China has since 2019 banned crypto-currency trading in a bid to curb money laundering but a large section of Chinese community are still able to engage in currency trading and this has been a source of concern for Beijing.
This fall in Bitcoin price follows the earlier dip it experienced last week arising from Tesla’s announcement that it would no longer be accepting bitcoin as payment.
As at Monday, the crypto-currency was down by 22%, a fall of about $6000 within the last 24 hours.
This fall has also had a ripple effect across the crypto market as other digital currencies like Ethereum and Dogecoin also took the hit losing 25% and 29% respectively.
The electric car maker also took a hit following the announcement last week as its shares fell by more than 3% on Wall Street, a likely effect arising from its exposure to Bitcoin. It however still holds about $1.5bn worth of the cryptocurrency.