(New York) Bitcoin lost $ 10,000 in less than an hour overnight from Friday to Saturday, nearly 20%, before recovering a bit but remained affected by the caution prevailing in the financial markets.
At around 11 a.m. on Saturday, the virtual currency was trading at $ 48,210, down 10% from Friday night.
Around midnight, it had suddenly dropped to $ 42,296, with no specific explanation a priori.
“Cryptocurrencies were rocked by the broader risk conditions associated with (the Omicron variant) and expectations of a more aggressive (US monetary policy), but really started nosing around on Friday, in the wake of the decline in equity markets, ”commented Martha Reyes, who heads research for cryptocurrency exchange Bequant.
The main Wall Street indices actually ended in the red on Friday, driven by weakness in technology stocks.
The decline in bitcoin, used to violent movements, is not completely surprising given that the currency has been moving since the end of November in a limited trading range and that some investors may have wanted to unwind certain positions, believes Mr.me Reyes in a note.
Same feeling for Anto Paroian, of the fund specializing in ARK36 cryptocurrencies.
After reaching a record 68,363 dollars on November 10, the virtual currency fell again and “has repeatedly failed to cross the threshold of 60,000 dollars”, he underlines in a note recalling that bitcoin has regularly recorded falls of 20% to 30% before recovering.