The crypto market took a beating on Tuesday, with bitcoin (BTC) leading the way lower.
The flagship cryptocurrency tumbled to as low as $$18,482.46 on some exchanges, bringing its losses to nearly 6.1% since the start of the day. Ethereum (ETH) and other major altcoins also registered losses, with some down over 10%.
In crypto this type of loss is nothing as this market is highly volatile. However, with BTC now trading at its lowest levels since late-2020, some investors are wondering if this is the start of a more prolonged sell-off.
The market had been on a tear since 2020 with BTC reaching a new all-time high over $68,000 in November 2021, but by January 2022 had dropped back below $35,000. While it approached $50,000 in March, bitcoin fell short and has been on a downward trend ever since.
With the world close to a global recession, some experts think that the recent sell-off in BTC and other assets is just a natural correction after such an incredible run-up in prices.
Others expect it to drop further to as low as $ 12,000 which is still much higher than it was a few years back.
Jamie Dimon slammed bitcoin and some other crypto as “decentralized Ponzi schemes.”
He argued that they serve no purpose beyond vacuuming up new buyers’ money to pay out profits to their existing holders.
“I’m a major skeptic of crypto tokens, which you call currency, like bitcoin,” the JPMorgan CEO told the House Financial Services Committee on Wednesday.
