Bitcoin crashes more than 30% after China bans deposits

Forex Dec 18, 2013 08:09AM ET

Bitcoin plunges more than 30% on China worries



plunged 26% during U.S. morning hours to trade at USD535.00 on the Tokyo based Mt. Gox Bitcoin exchange. The currency crashed by as much as 36.3% earlier in the day to hit a session low of USD455.00, the weakest level since November 16.



Prices of the virtual currency are down approximately 56% since hitting an all-time high of USD1,241.10 on November 29. It was trading at USD100 in early October.



Bitcoin’s losses came after China's largest Bitcoin exchange, BTC China, said that it "has no option but to stop accepting yuan deposits."



BTC China co-founder Bobby Lee said, “As of right now, we have received notice from our third-party payment company that they will disallow customers from making deposits into our exchange."



The news comes one day after the People’s Bank of China banned third-party payment service providers from offering clearing services to online Bitcoin exchanges, a crippling blow that could make it much harder to trade the virtual currency in China.



The PBOC recently said that Bitcoin did not qualify as a currency and lacked legal protections and that financial institutions and payment systems were not allowed to take deposits from Bitcoin-related businesses.



Rising demand from China has seen the country become the largest Bitcoin market in recent months, as buyers seek to profit from speculating in the currency.



Bitcoin is digital cash for the internet and it is not backed by a government or central bank to regulate or issue it. It can be used to purchase goods and services from an increasing number of stores and online retailers.



Investing.com - Virtual currency Bitcoin lost more than a third of its value on Wednesday, after BTC China, the world’s largest exchange by volume, said that it has “temporarily stopped” accepting yuan deposits.plunged 26% during U.S. morning hours to trade at USD535.00 on the Tokyo based Mt. Gox Bitcoin exchange. The currency crashed by as much as 36.3% earlier in the day to hit a session low of USD455.00, the weakest level since November 16.Prices of the virtual currency are down approximately 56% since hitting an all-time high of USD1,241.10 on November 29. It was trading at USD100 in early October.Bitcoin’s losses came after China's largest Bitcoin exchange, BTC China, said that it "has no option but to stop accepting yuan deposits."BTC China co-founder Bobby Lee said, “As of right now, we have received notice from our third-party payment company that they will disallow customers from making deposits into our exchange."The news comes one day after the People’s Bank of China banned third-party payment service providers from offering clearing services to online Bitcoin exchanges, a crippling blow that could make it much harder to trade the virtual currency in China.The PBOC recently said that Bitcoin did not qualify as a currency and lacked legal protections and that financial institutions and payment systems were not allowed to take deposits from Bitcoin-related businesses.Rising demand from China has seen the country become the largest Bitcoin market in recent months, as buyers seek to profit from speculating in the currency.Bitcoin is digital cash for the internet and it is not backed by a government or central bank to regulate or issue it. It can be used to purchase goods and services from an increasing number of stores and online retailers.

Bitcoin crashes more than 30% after China bans deposits

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