Bitcoin’s price has been dropping in the last few weeks, so much so that it fell below the $5,000 mark for the first time since October of 2017, and that miners are currently struggling to remain profitable.
Just as some believed a relief rally was in, bitcoin’s price started falling once again, and is currently down by about 3.7% in the last 24-hour period. One bitcoin is currently going for about $4,300, and the cryptocurrency’s market cap is now down to $75 billion.
The cryptocurrency’s sell-off has had various effects on its ecosystem. A recent report has revealed the value of bitcoin payments plummeted about 80% this year, although data on these is patchy as some trades with other currencies are often included. Nevertheless, the “Holiday 2018” consumer report revealed teenagers would rather receive cryptocurrency, or Fortnite “V-Bucks” over cash or gift cards.
According to MarketWatch demand for cryptocurrencies may not be down at all, as Jani Ziedins of CrackedMarket revealed a short-term bottom may be close. He was quoted as saying:
Look for the selling to continue over the next few days, but a bounce off of $3.5k-ish that returns to $5k is likely. While that doesn’t sound like a lot given the latest tumble, a bounce from $3.5k to $5k is a nearly 50% payout for just a few days of work.
Ziedins noted that making a profit off of the short-term bounce is “not for the faint of heart,” although he believes there will be “nice rewards for those willing to jump aboard the inevitable bounce.”
Other analysts have suggested that bitcoin may find support at the $3,500 and $3,000 levels. eToro senior analyst Mati Greenspan tweeted out that he expects the cryptocurrency to indeed find support at these levels, although a bounce before reaching them could be a “very bullish sign.”
Now that $5k is broken, we can expect light support at $3,500 and heavy support at $3,000. If it turns around before reaching these levels it will be a very bullish sign indeed. #NotTradingAdvice #DYOR pic.twitter.com/484oHOm5cH
— Mati Greenspan (@MatiGreenspan) November 20, 2018
Altcoin Sell-Off Continues
The crypto market’s decline didn’t just impact BTC. According to available data most cryptocurrencies are currently down, with Ethereum Classic (ETC), Bitcoin Cash, and Dash dropping the most, as they’re down 8.8%, 7.1%, and 9.1% respectively.
Ethereum’s ether and XRP are both down, by 6.7% and 6.1% respectively. The cryptocurrencies that have been able to, to a certain extent, resist the sell-off are EOS, NEO, LTC, and BTC. These are down by between 3% and 4%.
The decline has notably also failed to affect the number of transactions being processed by blockchain-based cryptocurrencies. As CryptoGlobe reported, the total value transferred by cryptocurrencies is comparable to that of MasterCard, as BTC transactions average $8 billion a day, while MasterCard’s network processes roughly $11 billion a day.
