cryptocurrency

Newsflash: Bitcoin Price Crashes Below $11,000 to Cap 20% Plunge

 
The bitcoin price crashed below the $11,000 mark on Thursday, extending the vicious sell-off that began the previous day.

Bitcoin Price Careens Down to $10,800

 

bitcoin price chart (BTC/USD)bitcoin price chart (BTC/USD)
The bitcoin price crashed through $11,000, just one day after it nearly eclipsed the $14,000 mark. | Source: TradingView

A suddenly-heavy BTC had struggled to defend the $12,000 mark for much of the morning, and around 12:00 pm ET traders capitulated to the stifling downward pressure.

In just 25 minutes, the bitcoin price careened from $11,751 all the way down to $10,800 on Bitstamp, setting a new intraday low and putting the flagship cryptocurrency dangerously close to the psychologically-significant $10,000 level.

BTC Has Crashed More Than $3,000 in Less Than 24 Hours

The 8% slide added to yesterday’s mid-day bloodbath, which served as a painful reminder that parabolic price rallies are often followed by sell-offs that are equally as swift.

On Wednesday, a red-hot BTC soared as high as $13,880, leading bulls to hike their year-end price targets and proclaim that the market would reach a new all-time high sooner rather than later.

Mati Greenspan, a senior market analyst at eToro, had warned euphoric investors to prepare themselves for a 20% bitcoin price crash, the inevitable result of the market’s feverish rally.

bitcoin and ethereum gain for the week while other crypto assets endure losses.bitcoin and ethereum gain for the week while other crypto assets endure losses.
Bitcoin and ethereum are the only major cryptocurrencies that have gained ground against the US dollar over the past week. | Source: CoinMarketCap

Little could he have known how quickly that sell-off would materialize. Just hours later, BTC plunged more than $1,500 in a matter of minutes, and the frenzy proved too much for major crypto exchange Coinbase’s servers to handle the load.

In less than 24 hours, the bitcoin price shaved more than $3,000 off its meteoric 2019 ascent, though it has since experienced a minor recovery. The cryptocurrency last traded at $11,149, dropping its market cap slightly below the $200 billion threshold.

Notably, the pullback occurred just before what is expected to be the “largest [cryptocurrency] derivatives expiry on record,” which is scheduled to take place on Friday.

Remarkably, bitcoin continues to post enormous weekly gains, having climbed more than 18% over the past seven days. Ethereum has also gained more than 10% for the period, while virtually every other major cryptocurrency has suffered significant losses.

Click here for a real-time bitcoin price chart.