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Bitcoin fell by as much as 18 percent on Thursday, hitting a four-week trough, as worries regarding a government crackdown on digital currency markets surfaced after reports indicated it was still possible that South Korea could ban trading on cryptocurrencies.
The decline in bitcoin prompted a selloff across other cryptocurrency markets. Ethereum slid 23 percent on the day at one point, according to Coinmarketcap. The third biggest decliner was Ripple.
Bitcoin traded as low as $11.191.59 on Bitstamp exchange. In U.S. trading, it rose to $12,078 but the price is still down 11.2 percent, putting it on track for its biggest one-day decline since September.
Bitcoin futures were also affected by the reports. The Cboe and CME bitcoin futures expiring later this month both declined. The Cboe contract declined 20 percent to around $11,010 and the CME contract fell almost 20 percent to around $11,160. Trading in the Cboe futures contract was briefly stopped in line with price volatility rules.
South Korean Finance Minister Kim Ding-yeon said that the government would be drafting a set of measures to crackdown on the “irrational” cryptocurrency investment mania, according to a report by Yonhap.
On Monday, South Korea said that its plans to ban cryptocurrency exchanges has not yet been finalized, as different government agencies were still in discussion how to regulate the virtual currency market.
The report from South Korea came amid reports that a senior Chinese policymaker has said authorities should illegalize centralized trading of cryptocurrencies and stop individuals and firms from providing related services.
