Bitcoin and Ether and other cryptocurrencies plummeted in price: what caused it

Today, on July 5, the price of bitcoin has plummeted to a four-month low of $54,000. The reason is the activity of the wallet of the closed crypto exchange Mt Gox.

Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies crashed on July 5 after the wallet of failed crypto exchange Mt Gox was spotted active again, sparking concerns over the impending distribution of bitcoin by the exchange.

Bitcoin price crashed 8.5% to $54,092.3K in the last 24 hours, hitting its lowest level since March. The token also dropped over 11% in the last seven days. Bitcoin activity scares as wallets linked to the now-defunct Mt Gox exchange were seen carrying out test transactions, heightening concerns over the exchange’s impending bitcoin distribution.

Mt Gox liquidators had announced last month that they will start returning bitcoins to customers from early July after the exchange’s bitcoin holdings were stolen in 2014. Those receiving these bitcoins will likely want to sell them, given that the price of bitcoin has increased substantially over the last decade, traders said.

The scenario put bitcoin under immense pressure and prompted traders to start dumping the token heavily, booking huge profits made so far in 2024. Prices of smaller cryptocurrencies followed bitcoin’s steep drop closely, while uncertainty over the US presidential election and interest rates also contributed to the dull sentiment towards cryptocurrencies.

Some uncertainty in the crypto markets was caused by speculation that President Joe Biden may not seek the Democratic Party’s nomination in the 2024 elections, especially amid concerns that Biden will be succeeded by Trump, who has shown hostility towards cryptocurrencies.

The crypto markets largely failed to keep pace with the rally in stock markets, which they usually follow. The world’s second largest token, Ether, fell 10.5% to $2,902.42. XRP, SOL, and ADA dropped between 7% and 17%, while among the memes, SHIB and DOGE lost over 16% each.