Bitcoin Plunges in Crypto Sell-Off

Cryptocurrencies experienced a significant downturn on Tuesday, hitting their lowest point since November. Bitcoin plummeted by 6.59%, trading at $6,071.00 on the Bitfinex exchange as of 8:50 AM ET. This decline leaves Bitcoin hovering close to a three-and-a-half-week low.

The cryptocurrency market had seen a rise at the end of July due to speculation that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission might approve the first cryptocurrency exchange-traded fund. However, following the agency’s decision to delay its ruling until September, prices took a sharp downturn.

Overall, the cryptocurrency market shed nearly $24 billion within a 24-hour period, with total market capitalization falling to approximately $193 billion, down from $217 billion a day earlier.

Ethereum, which ranks as the second-largest cryptocurrency by market cap, dropped 21.05% to $263.28 on the Bitfinex exchange amidst reports that investors who initially purchased Ethereum to join initial coin offerings (ICOs) are liquidating their holdings to cover expenses.

Ripple, the third-largest virtual currency, fell by 16.27%, trading at $0.26141, while Litecoin experienced a decline of 16.01%, sitting at $51.886.

In other updates, the mobile payment and money transfer app Square has launched Bitcoin trading capabilities across all U.S. states. The company secured the New York BitLicense in June, enabling it to provide this service to residents of New York. The option for buying and selling Bitcoin was initially introduced last November for select customers in certain states. Users can execute transactions almost instantly and spend their cryptocurrency using a Visa card issued by Square.