Bitcoin changed hands below $ 24,000 sometime Monday morning, down 20% from Friday, enough to push the value of the world’s dominant cryptocurrency to its lowest level since December 2020. The sell-off prompted a large cryptocurrency exchange called Celsius to suspend withdrawals on Sunday afternoon, meaning investors could not withdraw what was left of their money. “We are taking this action today to put Celsius in a better position to meet its withdrawal obligations over time,” said the stock exchange, which had assets of about $ 25 billion in peak valuations last year. Quebec’s retirement plan, the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec, is one of Celsius’ financial backers, having participated in a $ 400 million investment in the platform last November. “Blockchain technology has the potential to disrupt many sectors of the traditional economy,” Caisse said at the time. “As digital assets grow in adoption, we intend to seize the right opportunities while working with our partners towards a regulated industry.” Caisse did not immediately respond to a request for comment from CBC News on Monday.
Other encryption exchanges were confiscated
Other major cryptocurrency exchanges have also had problems with flooding of trading orders, with Binance saying it has “temporarily suspended” Bitcoin withdrawals. The sell-off brought the total value of all cryptocurrencies below $ 1 trillion, a limit that has not fallen below January 2021. The value of cryptocurrencies peaked at about $ 2.9 trillion in November 2021. before countries around the world began to see inflation rise to its highest point in decades. On Friday, data showed that the US inflation rate rose to 8.6 percent in May, the highest level in more than 40 years. Investors and market observers had hoped the rate would fall from 8.3 per cent last month, but rose even higher, a worrying sign that the central bank’s efforts, such as raising interest rates on curb inflation, do not pay off. “As inflation proves to be an even tougher opponent than expected, Bitcoin and ethereum continue to show serious bruises in the ring,” said Susannah Streeter, senior investment and market analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown. “They are the main victims of fleeing away from risky assets, as investors worry about the spiraling rise in consumer prices around the world.”
