A representation of the Bitcoin virtual cryptocurrency can be seen in this photo illustration taken on June 14, 2021. REUTERS / Edgar Su / Illustration

December 4 (Reuters) – Bitcoin lost a fifth of its value on Saturday as a combination of profit taking and macroeconomic concerns triggered nearly $ 1 billion in sales through cryptocurrencies.

Bitcoin was down 12% as of 9:20 a.m. GMT at $ 47,495. It fell as low as $ 41,967.5 during the session, bringing the day’s total losses to 22%.

The massive sell-off of cryptocurrencies has also seen ether, the coin linked to the ethereum blockchain network, plunge by more than 10%.

Based on the cryptocurrency data platform Coingecko, the market cap of the 11,392 coins it tracks has fallen nearly 15% to $ 2.34 trillion. That value briefly crossed $ 3 trillion last month, when bitcoin hit a record high of $ 69,000.

The plunge follows a volatile week for financial markets. Global stocks and US benchmark bond yields fell on Friday after data showed US job growth slowed in November and the Omicron variant of the coronavirus kept investors on the lookout . Read more

Justin d’Anethan, Hong Kong-based exchange sales manager at cryptocurrency exchange EQONEX, said he has observed the increase in leverage ratios in cryptocurrency markets as well as how whose large holders had moved their coins from wallets to exchanges. The latter is usually a sign of intention to sell.

“The whales in the crypto space appear to have moved coins to the trading platform, taken advantage of a bullish bias and the leverage of retail traders, and then brought prices down,” he said. -he declares.

The sale also precedes testimonials from executives of eight major cryptocurrency firms, including Coinbase Global (COIN.O) CFO Alesia Haas and FTX Trading CEO Sam Bankman-Fried, before the financial services committee of the United States House December 8. read more

The hearing marks the first time that major players in the crypto markets will testify before U.S. lawmakers, as policymakers grapple with the implications of cryptocurrencies and how best to regulate them.

Last week, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) rejected a second WisdomTree spot bitcoin exchange-traded fund proposal.

Data from another Coinglass platform showed that nearly $ 1 billion worth of cryptocurrency had been liquidated in the past 24 hours, with most of it on the digital exchange Bitfinex.

“On the contrary, this is the opportunity to buy the downside for many investors who might previously have felt they missed the boat. We can see the tie bought at a higher price, suggesting that the people are brewing money, in the crypto space, to do just that, ”D’Anethan said, referring to the cryptocurrency world’s largest stablecoin.

A drop in bitcoin funding rates – the cost of holding bitcoin through perpetual futures that peaked at 0.06% in October – also showed traders had turned bearish.

The funding rate on cryptocurrency trading platform BitMEX fell to minus 0.18% from levels of 0.01% for most of November.

Reporting by Maria Ponnerhath in Bengaluru and Vidya Ranganathan in Singapore. Additional reporting by Megan Davies in New York Editing by Shri Navaratnam and Jane Merriman

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