EQONEX HK head says large holders had been moving coins to exchanges over the past weeks
Bitcoin fell in value by 22% over the weekend, to a value of $41,967.5, which triggered a selling spree across various cryptocurrencies to the tune of $1 billion. The fall of BTC was attributed to a combination of profit-taking and macro-economic concerns, according to a report.
Of the nearly 12,000 coins currently in the blockchain, the total value has fallen from $3 trillion to $2.34 trillion over the last month. In November, the coin had hit an all-time high of $69,000. Data from platform Coinglass revealed that $1 billion in coins had been liquidated within a 24-hour span Saturday last.
Bitcoin emerged as an open-source, technology-centric means of correcting the financial system after the financial crises of 2008, and can be called a disruptive force against the incumbent system. Open source means that anyone can look at the code used to create the ‘blockchain’ that forms the ledger of all existing bitcoins. A number of banks have been looking at this open-source system, understanding its potential and likely wanting to adopt the system for their own use.
However, it is a system with its own ‘whales’ — large-scale buyers and sellers. According to EQONEX Hong Kong-based head Justin d’Anethan, these whales had been moving their coins from wallets to exchanges over the past few weeks, which is generally indicative of the incoming sale of coins.
It is pertinent here to mention that this selloff took place days before eight major cryptocurrency firms were to appear before US House Financial Services Committee, which will be the first time that crypto firms appear before US lawmakers.
As lawmakers attempt to regulate the decentralized form of currency with the upcoming hearing, D’Anethan remarked that this dip may be a good time for people to invest in cryptocurrency.
“We can see tether bought at a premium, suggesting people are getting cash ready, within the crypto space, to do just that,” D’Anethan said, referring to the biggest stablecoin in the cryptocurrency world.
