The market capitalisation of cryptocurrencies has fallen to around $138.6bn, amid investor fears over regulatory scrutiny and a “hard fork” split for bitcoin cash. The controversial token sank well below its dollar peg last month, dropping as low as 93 cents, as questions built up over its alleged role in driving bitcoin's rally — which saw the digital coin soar close to $20,000 — last year. The drop marks an 80% fall from the $830bn valuation at the beginning of 2018. The collapse follows news the bitcoin cash blockchain would split into two, an event which usually arises from disagreement over how a crypto should be scaled to cope with higher trading volume. Bitcoin’s price fell by more than 20% in early morning trading, before recovering some ground later on as investors sought out safe haven assets.
The market capitalisation of cryptocurrencies has fallen to around $138.6bn, amid investor fears over regulatory scrutiny and a “hard fork” split for bitcoin cash. The drop marks an 80% fall from the $830bn valuation at the beginning of 2018. The collapse follows news the bitcoin cash blockchain would split into two, an event which usually arises from disagreement over how a crypto should be scaled to cope with higher trading volume. Bitcoin’s price fell by more than 20% in early morning trading, before recovering some ground later on as investors sought out safe haven assets.