Monday, January 28, 2019

As Putin embraces Bitcoin as a national currency, the strategy is looking dim. Money laundering may be a better outcome for Russia under Putin.

January 28, 2019
By Ethel Jiang

Bitcoin, (click here) the largest cryptocurrency by market cap, was down as much as 4.8% to below $3,388 a coin early Monday, printing at its lowest level since December 17, 2018.

That was not far above $3,136, bitcoin's lowest level since September 2017. Its rivals ether (-7.21%), litecoin (-4.7%), and bitcoin cash(-8.77%) were also under pressure.
"The cryptoasset movement today is nothing more than technical," Mati Greenspan, senior market analyst at eToro, told Business Insider.
"There’s no need for overreaction here. Bitcoin is continuing to trade within the core area of support between $3,000 and $3,500, within the broader range of $3,000 - $5,000, where it’s been since November 2018."
Investors in the digital currency saw its price explode in 2017 as cryptomania swept over the world. Bitcoin began 2017 worth less than $1,000 a coin before soaring more than 2,000% to a high of $19,511. However, the year of 2018 was a different story, with the cryptocurrency's value plunging by 70%....