BITCOIN plunged below US$20,000 (RM80,000) yesterday, shedding 9% to fall to US$18,740 from the previous day, its lowest level since December 13, 2020.

The most popular crypto asset in the world has lost more than 72% of its value since reaching a high of US$68,991 on November 10, with investors increasingly wary of risk

Bitcoin rose to US$18,941 at 1550 GMT, down 8% from Friday, after sinking to US$18,740 yesterday.

Other major digital currencies were also down yesterday, including ether, which lost almost 10% of its value.

World stock markets plunged this week amid fears that inflation-fighting interest rate hikes by the US Federal Reserve and other central banks can trigger a recession.

Cryptocurrencies have paid the biggest price.

The value of the global crypto market fell below the symbolic US$1 trillion mark on Monday, after reaching US$3 trillion in November.

Bitcoin’s fall is accelerated by the suspension of withdrawals by two cryptocurrency platforms.

The Celsius Network said it is pausing “all withdrawals, swaps and transfers between accounts” due to “extreme market conditions”.

Babel Finance said it is facing “unusual liquidity pressures”.

Major exchange Binance temporarily suspended bitcoin withdrawals and advised customers to use other networks.

Coinbase said it is trimming 18% of its workforce, about 1,100 jobs, citing tight economic conditions and overly rapid expansion.

“We appear to be entering a recession after a 10+ year economic boom,” said Coinbase founder Brian Armstrong.

The crypto sector benefited from a vast infusion of cash due to easy money policies from the biggest central banks in the world in recent years.

However, rampant inflation has sparked tighter monetary policies across worldwide, helping to send the industry crashing. – AFP, June 19, 2022.