Bitcoin may have been a fun Christmas gift to give in 2017, but its value hasn’t held up as well as a lump of coal so far this year: The price of the digital asset has fallen by a quarter since the day many people unwrapped the cryptocurrency delivered by Santa. The digital token that spawned a global mania has had a brutal run over the past few weeks, dropping nearly 50% from its all-time high in mid-December.
Bitcoin may have been a fun Christmas gift to give in 2017, but its value hasn’t held up as well as a lump of coal so far this year: The price of the digital asset has fallen by a quarter since the day many people unwrapped the cryptocurrency delivered by Santa. The digital token that spawned a global mania has had a brutal run over the past few weeks, dropping nearly 50% from its all-time high in mid-December.
Cryptocurrencies of all stripes are falling amid a regulatory crackdown in Asia: China appears hellbent on stopping its citizens from trading bitcoin. South Koreans, meanwhile, are begging their government not to tighten its control over cryptocurrency trading. Bitcoin fell more than 10% at some points during trading today, , following a 16% plunge yesterday, the biggest decline on a closing basis since September.
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The bloodbath has swept up other cryptos: ethereum and ripple have both fallen by 20% or more over the past 24 hours, according to Coinmarketcap.com.
But if a Christmas gift that’s lost a quarter of its value since you got it is bumming you out, look on the bright side: You might be able to turn that loss into a tax write-off this year.
