Cryptocurrency market value slumps under $1 trillion

• The global cryptocurrency market peaked in November 2021 at $2.9 trillion.
• In the previous two months, it has lost $1 trillion in value.
• Bitcoin was down more than 10% on Monday to an 18-month low of $23,750. Ether, a smaller coin, plummeted almost 15% to $1,210.

According to data portal CoinMarketCap, the value of the cryptocurrency market went below $1 trillion for the first time since January 2021 on Monday, reaching $926 billion.

The global cryptocurrency market peaked in November 2021 at $2.9 trillion, but it has struggled so far this year. In the previous two months, it has lost $1 trillion in value as investors fled riskier assets in the face of rising prices and fears that central bank interest rate hikes could stifle growth.

Bitcoin, the most popular cryptocurrency, was down more than 10% on the day, plunging to an 18-month low of $23,750. So far this year, it has dropped by roughly 50%. Ether, a smaller coin, plummeted almost 15% to $1,210.

“As inflation appears to be a more difficult foe to vanquish than imagined, Bitcoin and Ether continue to take a beating in the ring,” Susannah Streeter, senior financial and markets analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said.

“As investors worry about spiralling consumer prices around the world, they are ripe victims of the flight away from risky assets.”