It was a rough November 2018 for Bitcoin and cryptocurrency investors or traders. The market reportedly lost $70 billion in total market value when BTC’s price dropped to its recent low of below $4,000.
According to a CNBC report, as the month of November ended, Bitcoin was down 37 percent. That’s its lowest drop since back in April 2011, when it fell 39 percent. Bitcoin began the month over $6,000 and finished it trading below or near the $4,000 level. The price is down by over 70 percent since the beginning of 2018, and 80 percent from the all-time high it hit of near or at $20,000 in December of last year.
Genesis Global Trading CEO Michael Moro has suggested that it’s unclear it the current prices Bitcoin fell to signify a bottom or “a brief period of consolidation before next move down.” However, he noted there are buyers waiting on the sidelines with cash in case it goes down further. Moro also mentioned there was a good bit of buying action around the $4,000 level at Genesis.
A few key pieces of news arrived in November which may have aided Bitcoin’s move into regulated markets. New York Stock Exchange Chairman Jeff Sprecher made comments indicating he believes that cryptocurrencies can have a future within the regulated market space. In addition, there is a new start-up called Bakkt which plans to release a version of Bitcoin futures. The Intercontinental Exchange plans to back this particular futures product which will go live early next year.
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) also made headways towards cracking down on fraudulent Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) in November. Charges were brought against celebrities DJ Khaled and Floyd Mayweather Jr. for the promotion of a particular crypto ICO without disclosing how much they were being paid for the promotion. Both celebrities agreed to pay certain fees or penalty fines as a result of the charges, although neither admitted or denied the charges.
Now investors and traders will wait to see how bumpy the ride gets from here, as December is underway and Bitcoin’s price is much farther down the chart than it was a year ago.
