Nurphoto | Getty Images

Bitcoin slid further on Wednesday, briefly dipping below the $61,000 mark in a session of volatile trade as the cryptocurrency attempted to stage a rebound.

At around 07:20 a.m. ET, bitcoin had bounced back to trade just over $63,900, up around 1% from 24 hours prior, according to CoinDesk data. Earlier on Wednesday, bitcoin had hit an intraday high of $65,716.

Bitcoin has had a stellar run and is up 124% in the past year. The world’s biggest cryptocurrency hit a record high of just under $73,800 last week.

The cryptocurrency’s price has been supported by the launch of the spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds in the U.S. in January, as well as by the upcoming halving — an event written in bitcoin’s code, which effectively slows the supply of the digital coin onto the market. Historically, halving has supported prices.

However, the value of all digital coins in existence has plunged since bitcoin’s all-time high and was down $200 billion as of Wednesday morning, according to data from Coinmarketcap.

The entire cryptocurrency market has shed around $370 billion of value since the bitcoin all-time high, as other digital assets such as ether and Solana also fell sharply.

Part of the decline is likely profit taking following a sharp rally in cryptocurrencies.

Data from CryptoQuant shows a massive spike in short-term holders selling their bitcoin at a profit on March 12.

“We’ve seen 20-30% pullbacks in previous Bitcoin bull markets as a normal occurrence when things start heating up. And we definitely had many signs over the past week of things heating up quite a bit,” Vijay Ayyar, vice president of international markets and growth at crypto exchange CoinDCX, told CNBC.

Bitcoin slides $10,000 from record high

Some momentum has come out of the bitcoin ETFs, which recorded a total of $154.4 million of net outflows on Monday, according to BitMEX Research. It was the first time the ETFs recorded net outflows since Mar. 1.

Grayscale Bitcoin Trust, or GBTC, logged $642.5 million of outflows, according to BitMEX Research, while the other ETFs posted modest or flat inflows.

GBTC has been criticized for its higher-than-average fees. However, Grayscale CEO Michael Sonnenshein told CNBC earlier this week that the crypto fund manager expects to bring fees on its Grayscale Bitcoin Trust ETF down in the coming months.

Ayyar said that, if bitcoin were to fall below the $60,000 threshold, the cryptocurrency could weaken further to test the $50,000 to $52,000 level, “which would be our line in the sand for this bull market to sustain going forward.”

CNBC’s Tanaya Macheel and Ryan Browne contributed to this report.

Read More: World News | Entertainment News | Celeb News
CNBC

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

You May Also Like

Blockchain, the tech behind bitcoin, may have found its ‘killer use case’ by keeping AI in check

Vertigo3d | E+ | Getty Images DAVOS, Switzerland — Blockchain could be…

Flight cancellations pile up as winter storm, 737 Max 9 grounding disrupt travel

A screen displays flight information at Des Moines International Airport, in Des…

BUSINESS LIVE: BoE holds base rate; Shell ups dividend; BT earnings top £6bn

The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee has voted to keep base…

Investing in hobbies can be money well spent — just don’t take on debt

Ryanjlane | E+ | Getty Images People often start the year by…