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It’s a bloodbath. Value of every cryptocurrency significantly lost over the weekend. According to Coinmarketcap, in the past 24 hours Bitcoin is down 8%, Ethereum 15%, Litecoin 16% — bringing the entire cryptocurrency market down to $143 billion.
Just two days ago Bitcoin achieved a historic high of over $5,000 on September 2. Since then Bitcoin’s price has plummeted to below $4,300, at the time of writing.
This market crash comes after world’s second largest economy, China, banned all the Initial Coin Offerings pending a review. In the US, the SEC has issued several warnings in the past around the risks of ICOs. It is important to note that this ruling only applies to ICOs or token sales, not cryptocurrency trades in general.
Just like every crash in the past, this market crash also brings great buying opportunities. You can buy your favorite cryptocurrencies at a discounted price. If Bitcoin fails to find support above $4100 level, the cryptocurrency may see a further decline to the next level of $3800.
Top Stories from the Crypto World
1. China bans companies from raising money through ICOs
All the ICOs are either delaying or cancelling sales in China as regulators warn of impending legislative moves to ban the market.
According to local news outlet Caixin, several government commissions have “studied” ICOs over the previous month, the most recent of which has heightened rhetoric, suggesting a full ban was “not impossible.”
The People’s Bank of China (PBoC) on Monday finally outlawed ICOs. Interestingly, the wording of the PBoC edict also suggested that trading and usage of all cryptocurrencies, including bitcoin, is now illegal in China.
The PBoC said that virtual currencies that are “not issued by the monetary authorities… do not have legal status equivalent to money, and can not and should not be circulated as a currency in the market use.”
Why it matters: China is world’s second largest economy. If the country has banned ICOs, it could be a sign of what could be happening in the future possible worldwide. We have already seen several warnings coming from the SEC in the past.
However, while this move will eradicate ICO scams, it will also put a major setback for genuine startups based out of China that want to raise funds through a token sale.
2. Bitmain raises $50 million in funding
According to a report by Bloomberg, China-based mining giant Bitmain is to receive a $50 million investment from the likes of Sequoia and IDG venture firms.
The report also stated that the Bitmain intends to expand into production of chips for artificial intelligence and set up mining farms in the U.S.
3. BRICS to discuss cryptocurrency as an alternative to national currencies
BRICS member states, Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, could create a cryptocurrency to function “as an alternative to other payment instruments.”
According to Kirill Dmitriev, head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund, investments in the bloc, is set to increase up to fourfold within the next three years.
Notably, National governments in Russia, India and South Africa, in particular, are seeing huge increases in cryptocurrency interest from citizens.