Investing.com — Bitcoin price fell sharply to a four-month low on Friday, extending a recent price decline as growing signs of an imminent distribution by defunct cryptocurrency exchange Mt Gox increased selling pressure on the token.
German police were also seen moving around $75 million worth of confiscated cryptocurrency from a hacking website to exchanges, potentially foreshadowing a sell-off event like the one seen earlier this year.
The token fell 8.5% over the past 24 hours to $54,092.3, its lowest level since March. The token is also down more than 11% over the past seven days.
Mt Gox wallet activity shakes Bitcoin
Wallets associated with the now-defunct Mt Gox exchange were seen conducting test transactions, raising concerns about an imminent distribution by the exchange.
Mt Gox liquidators said in June that they would begin returning bitcoins stolen during a 2014 hack to customers starting in early July. Traders speculated that most recipients of the tokens would be willing to sell them, given that the price of Bitcoin has risen exponentially over the past decade.
This scenario generated massive selling pressure on Bitcoin and caused traders to largely abandon the token, also securing strong gains so far in 2024.
There were also fears of further sales by the German police.
Cryptocurrency price today: Political uncertainty and rate jitters weigh on prices
Broader cryptocurrency prices followed sharp declines in Bitcoin, with uncertainty over the US presidential election and interest rates also weighing on weak sentiment towards cryptocurrencies.
Speculation that President Joe Biden may drop his Democratic bid for the 2024 election has created some uncertainty among cryptocurrency markets, especially amid concerns that Biden will be replaced by an even more crypto-averse candidate.
Moreover, uncertainty ahead of a key US reading also kept traders wary of cryptocurrencies, even as they sank on rising expectations of an interest rate cut in September.
Cryptocurrency markets largely lagged behind the rally in stocks, which they typically follow.
The world's No. 2 token fell 10.5% to $2,902.42, wiping out all of its gains from late May and hitting a near two-month low.
and fell between 7% and 17%, while among meme tokens, they lost more than 16% each.
The losses were also partly due to low trading volumes due to the July 4 U.S. market holiday. But they also reflected fading sentiment toward cryptocurrencies as anticipation for the approval of a spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund dried up.
