Bitcoin correction sees prices drop 19%

Bitcoin dipped substantially at the tail end of last week after topping $2,700 USD on Thursday; the price currently sits at $2,989.61 CAD – up 50% in 30 days, despite the sharp correction – as of 9:30am, ET, Monday, according to CoinDesk.

The value of a single coin dropped by almost 20% shortly after reaching a high of $2,791.69 USD on Thursday.

This was a market wide correction which saw almost all cryptocurrencies down on Friday and over the weekend with prices only in the last 24 hours or so beginning to recover.

Bobby Lee, CEO of BTCC, a major bitcoin exchange, told CNBC: "The correction was actually quite brief, the prices today are still higher than that of a week ago.

"I think the pullback was just a profit taking, a correction from the skyrocketing prices of last week."

Many analysists saw this retraction coming, given the unprecedented gains of the past fortnight; investors cashed out, knowing that the uptrend couldn’t last forever, likely with an eye to buy back in when prices dropped.



Given the slow but steady recovery already taking place it seems the buying back in process has already begun.

Despite the fall, the crypto market is still up by around 200% compared to this time last month, and commentators remain optimistic about the future; Lee believes the correction is only temporary because, ultimately, the situation hasn’t changed.

Driving factors behind bitcoin’s recent success include Japan’s decision to recognize the coin as legal tender, the recent resolution to the ongoing scalability issue with the currency, and the looming possibility of the world’s first bitcoin ETFs.

Ether, bitcoin’s closest rival, has surged 2,300% this year; bitcoin itself has gained more than 150% during that time, having already experienced its own lucratively rapid ascension period some time ago.