As the Coronavirus outbreak (COVID-19) takes its toll on the world, it’s easy to forget that the disease has also affected the financial market too. In the cryptocurrency market, the virus has caused Bitcoin’s value to fall by a whopping 48%.
In less than 24 hours, the value of the digital dollar went from having an average value of RM33000 to just a little over RM22000. Value-wise, the pandemic has reportedly wiped out more than US$93.5 billion (~RM400 billion) in overall asset value.
The dramatic fall in Bitcoin’s value comes around the same time as stock markets around the world began plummeting due to COVID-19 concerns. Marking heavy losses for companies in countries like the US, Japan, and Hong Kong, to name a few.
Bitcoin isn’t the only cryptocurrency suffering from the crisis. Ethereum, the second-most popular cryptocoin, saw its value tank by approximately 49%, dropping from RM991 to RM564, at the time of writing. Even Ripple (XRP) wasn’t spared from the halving, losing almost 42% of its value within the same 24 hour period.
From an alternative point of view, this would, of course, be an ideal time to purchase Bitcoin. That said, do remember that this cryptocurrency, by its very nature, is extremely volatile. Meaning that you’re still taking a gamble by investing in it.
(Source: CNBC)
