The sharp decline in several cryptocurrency platforms that began on Monday continued Wednesday, as Bitcoin briefly plummeted to just over $20,000 per coin. Its losses on Wednesday alone amounted to 2.6 percent. And Bitcoin is far from the hardest hit: Some platforms have halted trading, while others have slashed jobs.
Tech expert Omar Gallaga says the downturn isn’t just about the speculative bubble surrounding the crypto world, but that it’s connected to turmoil in the larger economy, too.
Highlights from this segment:
– The value of leading crypto assets including Bitcoin and Ethereum has dropped by two-thirds in the past six months.
– The Luna and Terra platforms crashed this week, and the Coinbase crypto exchange laid off about 1,100 employees.
– “It’s all macro” is a phrase crypto enthusiasts have used to indicate the ways what’s happening in the market mirror the economy’s overall weakness, including high inflation and a downturn in the stock market.
– Attendees at last week’s Consensus 2022 conference in Austin remained bullish about crypto, despite the downturn that would become a crash as attendees were leaving town.
