On the morning of May 19, 2021 (Vietnam time), Bitcoin (BTC) – the world’s largest cryptocurrency – suddenly plunged from $43,598 down to $38,600, according to data from Binance, the world’s biggest exchange. Bitcoin’s price is now hovering around $39,000, marking a 12.9% drop compared to 24 hours earlier, according to CoinDesk.
This sharp decline slashed the total cryptocurrency market cap from $2.072 trillion to $1.796 trillion, wiping out $276 billion in just a few hours. Bitcoin’s crash also dragged down other major cryptocurrencies like ETH, BNB, and Dogecoin.
Notably, this is Bitcoin’s third major drop in just a few days. Earlier, Bitcoin had already plunged from its peak near $59,000. The fall came after Tesla announced it would stop accepting Bitcoin payments due to environmental concerns over crypto mining. Rumors that Tesla sold off its Bitcoin holdings only pushed prices even lower.
Many experts say the latest Bitcoin drop followed a Reuters report covering an announcement from the People’s Bank of China (PBOC), which reaffirmed its stance against cryptocurrency payments. The statement was also broadcast on government CCTV and posted on PBOC’s official WeChat account.
However, many crypto experts criticized Reuters for misleading coverage, accusing the outlet of misrepresenting the news. According to Thestreet, the Reuters report could have led the public to believe China introduced a new crypto ban. In reality, the PBOC only reiterated existing regulations warning about risks in crypto trading and investing.
Yu Lingqu, deputy director at the China Development Research Institute in Shenzhen, said the PBOC’s latest statement did not include any new legal measures against cryptocurrencies.
Liu Yang, a lawyer at Beijing’s DeHeng Law Office, confirmed the announcement, though published by PBOC, was actually drafted by industry associations rather than Chinese government officials.
“They just want to be cautious,” said Bobby Lee, founder and CEO of crypto wallet provider Ballet, commenting on the PBOC’s move. “They feel the market is overheated with growing speculative trading. They’re looking out for the best interests of everyone.”
Source: Yahoo! Finance
