The cryptocurrency market has plunged over the last 24 hours, shedding $170 billion U.S. in value, as fears escalate concerning the Mt. Gox Bitcoin (BTC) distribution.
The price of Bitcoin fell 7% in overnight trading to $54,500 U.S.
This is the first time that Bitcoin, the largest cryptocurrency, has traded below the $55,000 U.S. level since February 27 of this year, according to market data.
Ethereum (ETH), the second biggest crypto, also saw its price decline 7% to trade at $2,900 U.S. per digital token.
Smaller cryptocurrencies such as Cardano (ADA), Solana (SOL) and Litecoin (LTC) have also seen their prices plunge, with some down as much as 13%.
In total, the entire cryptocurrency market has shed $170 billion U.S. in combined market capitalization over the past 24 hours.
The global selloff comes as investors worry about the upcoming payout of nearly $9 billion U.S. worth of Bitcoin to users of the bankrupt crypto exchange Mt. Gox.
Today (July 5), the trustee for the Mt. Gox bankruptcy estate began making repayments in Bitcoin to creditors of the defunct crypto exchange following a decade of legal wrangling.
In all, the Mt. Gox estate plans to return $9 billion U.S. worth of Bitcoin to former clients of the exchange.
Concerns are that the Mt. Gox repayment will lead to massive selling of Bitcoin on the open market as creditors of the exchange dump their holdings and take profits.
At the same time, the crypto market is being pressured after the German government sold 3,000 Bitcoins worth $175 million U.S. that was seized from criminal enterprises in recent years.
Before today’s big drop, the price of Bitcoin had been trending lower since the cryptocurrency underwent a halving event on April 19 that reduced the available supply of the token by 50%.
Despite the current decline, Bitcoin’s price remains up 25% on the year.
