Cryptocurrency
Cryptocurrency
Bitcoin price (BTC/USD) drops below $10,500 on Monday afternoon
Bitcoin spent the better part of the Monday session moving within the $10,500-$10,650 price range. Having opened the session at $10,596.95, the digital coin rose to an intraday high of $10,651.79 in early trading, but it lacked the necessary momentum to further its advance. After a few hours of uneventful trading, the coin plunged sharply in the afternoon, with its price falling to as low as $10,154.92 during the final hours of the session. BTC eventually finished the day at $10,343.11.
While Bitcoin managed to hold above $10,000 yesterday, the coin moved further away from the $11,000 level, which it had given up last week, ahead of two separate US Congress hearings over Facebook’s Libra cryptocurrency project. Last week, Facebook’s blockchain chief David Marcus testified before the Senate Banking Committee and the House Financial Services Committee on Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively. During the hearings, members of both committees voiced their concerns over the project, with some urging Facebook to halt development.
Announced last month, Facebook’s move into crypto was largely responsible for the strong rally that led many digital currencies, including Bitcoin, to fresh 2019 highs. However, the initial enthusiasm has somewhat waned amid the growing scrutiny over the project.
In the UK, the chair of the House of Commons’ Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee, Damian Collins, yesterday indicated that the committee wanted to investigate Facebook over Libra.
Meanwhile, Bitcoin has continued to struggle in today’s trading, with its price edging lower in the opening hours of the session. As of 06:29 BST, the Bitcoin price stood at $10,224.75, according to data from digital currency tracker Coinmarketcap. The coin has lost 3.5% of its value in the past 24 hours. Its total market capitalisation currently stands at $182.3 billion, which represents 65.2% of the combined value of all digital currencies.
Featured image: Igor Batrakov / Shutterstock.com
More Resources