ANTHONY WALLACE/AFP/Getty Images)
A man uses his phone as he walks past ATM machines for digital currency Bitcoin in Hong Kong on December 18, 2017.
- Bitcoin was down 5% Monday and trading at its lowest level in over a year.
- It has fallen 40% since November 14, a few days before a hard fork in its rival bitcoin cash.
- Watch bitcoin trade live.
Bitcoin and its rival cryptocurrencies were under pressure Monday as the relentless sell-off that began less than two weeks ago continued.
Early selling Monday had bitcoin, the largest crytpocurrency by market value, down 5% to near $3,800 and trading at levels last seen in September 2017. Bitcoin has seen 40% of its market value wiped out since November 14, a few days before the hard fork in its rival bitcoin cash. The two sides have been suspected of selling their bitcoin reserves to finance the mining of blocks on their respective blockchains to establish control.
However, the most recent bout of selling appears to be more technical based as it has come amid a lack of any new headlines. The meteoric rise of cryptocurrencies late last year caused prices to blow through price levels at an eye-popping rate without establishing much support, meaning the fall could be just as fast.
And bitcoin isn't the only cryptocurrency getting hit on Monday. Here's a look at bitcoin's rivals at 10:46 a.m. ET:
- Ethereum -5.82%
- Bitcoin cash -0.44%
- XRP -5.57%
- Litecoin -5.64%
It has been a tough year for digital-currency investors, who saw prices explode in 2017 as cryptomania swept over the world. Bitcoin, for example, began 2017 worth less than $1,000 a coin before soaring more than 2,000% to a high of $19,511 a coin.
This year has been a different story, however, with the cryptocurrency's value having plunged by 60%.
Get the latest Bitcoin price here.>>