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The price of Bitcoin fell below $5,000 on Coinbase for the first time in 2018 as the bear market continues to drag prices down across the board.
Market Cap Drops to Below $87 Billion
For the first time since October 2017, Bitcoin dropped lower than $5,000, at $4,996 on San Francisco-based crypto exchange Coinbase. As a result, its market cap was pushed down below $87 billion.
https://twitter.com/CryptoShillNye/status/1064557836066156546
Over the past seven days, Bitcoin’s value has declined by over 21 per cent, according to CoinMarketCap. The drop in value comes after months of stability with the crypto asset trading within the $6,200 and $6,800 range. However, last week market prices across the board started dropping between 10 and 20 per cent.
At the time of publishing, Bitcoin’s value has risen slightly back above the $5,000 level, at $5,101. Yet, according to one analyst Bitcoin is likely to fall back under $5,000 as it faces regulatory hurdles in the next few months. Stephen Innes, the head of Asia Pacific trading at Oanda, said to MarketWatch:
“I remain incredibly bearish on BTC with the $1,000 level looking as likely as $10,000. But this is from a longstanding and unwavering view that regulators and the banking system will continue to push back against the rise of virtual markets…”
According to Mati Greenspan, an eToro analyst, if the support level of $5,000 doesn’t hold, the next logical won’t be until $3,500. In a report from CNBC, he stated: “With all the falling prices lately, this definitely fits the definition of a buyers market.”
Others, however, have pointed to the recent Bitcoin Cash hard fork as the reason for declining prices. Brian Kelly, founder and CEO of cryptocurrency investment firm BKCM, said last week that the market is experiencing a “crypto civil war.” Referring to the split with the altcoin, Kelly said:
“When you do a software upgrade, everybody usually agrees. But in this particular case, everybody is not agreeing. So, we’ve got ourselves a ‘crypto civil war’ […] People started selling. That triggered stops. Everybody got concerned. And that’s what happened today — the entire market sell-down.”
Related Reading: Bitcoin Cash War Begins: Hash Power of BCH Increasing Rapidly
It remains to be seen whether or not the market will improve in the short-term. As for Tom Lee, co-founder of Fundstrat Global Advisors, he’s reportedly revised his end of year prediction for Bitcoin. Over the weekend, it was noted that he had changed it from $25,000 to $15,000.
Given the way the market’s currently heading that seems incredibly optimistic.
Featured image from Shutterstock.
