Bitcoin dropped below $19,000 for the first time after December 2020 as a demonstration of deepening stress within the crypto industry that keeps accumulating against a backdrop of monetary tightening. The most significant digital token by market value tumbled as much as 9.2% to $18,740 on Saturday, June 18th, marking a record-breaking 12th consecutive daily decline.
The two forerunners of the crypto market are both down more than 70% from highs set in early November. Ether has breached $1,000 and dropped almost 11% to $975, the lowest since January 2021. According to Kunal Goel, a research analyst at Messari, “Global macro uncertainty combined with spectacular blow-ups in the crypto ecosystem has caused prices to fall at a rate that has surprised investors.”
The latest leg-down pushed bitcoin below $19,511, the high the coin hit during its last bull cycle in 2017, which was reached at the end of that year. Throughout its 12-year trading history, bitcoin has never dropped below previous cycle peaks.
