Bitcoin dropped below $19,000 on Saturday, extending a brutal slide in cryptocurrencies. The price of bitcoin fell more than 9% in 24 hours to $18,642.22, as of about 2 p.m. ET, according to Coin Metrics data. The last time bitcoin traded around this level was December 2020.
Ether, the second-largest token, plunged 10.54% to $963.22. Crypto investors are grappling with aggressive interest rate hikes from the U.S. Federal Reserve and a worsening liquidity crunch that has pushed major players into financial difficulty.
According to CNBC, The Fed on Wednesday hiked rates by 75 basis points, its biggest increase since 1994. That has led to a retreat from risky assets of all stripes, including stocks and crypto.
Elsewhere, the crypto space is still reeling from the fallout of the $60 billion collapse of two major tokens last month. This week, $3 billion crypto lender Celsius halted withdrawals, locking users out of their funds and raising fears it may face insolvency.
Celsius acts a lot like a bank, taking investors’ crypto and lending it out to institutions to generate a return on deposits. It holds lots of assets in the so-called decentralized finance space. Celsius, which says it is “acting in the interest of our community,” did not return multiple requests for comment.
Another key player, Three Arrows Capital, is in the midst of its own liquidity crisis. The $10 billion crypto hedge fund is reportedly on the brink of insolvency after the plunge in crypto markets reduces the value of its holdings.
