Bitcoin’s trading action lately is wild even by crypto’s standards

It’s been a rude awakening for bitcoin investors who thought they could handle the crypto volatility. The world’s largest digital currency suffered a 30% one-day drop last Wednesday, falling to about $30,000 apiece. Just in mid-April, bitcoin hit a record high of $64,829. The turbulence was dramatic even by crypto’s standards. The last time bitcoin saw a decline of this magnitude was March 2020 at the height of the Covid pandemic. And even then, the trading wasn’t as jarring.

Bitcoin has experienced 14 down days in May alone, according to Coin Metrics. So far this year, there have been 39 days with daily swings of 5% or more in either direction, based on bitcoin’s closing prices. There were 42 such days in all of 2020.

While the digital token bounced back rapidly with the price up 20% above $39,000 on Monday, heightened regulatory pressure as well as its technical picture are pointing to more wild trading ahead, strategists said.

The recent fluctuations came amid elevated regulatory scrutiny in the U.S. and abroad. The U.S. Federal Reserve will soon release a paper outlining its own research into the central bank digital currency area. Meanwhile, Chinese authorities have vowed to crack down on mining and trading of the cryptocurrency.

Bitcoin’s trading action lately is wild even by crypto’s standards and the drama is not over yet, CNBC, May 25