Bitcoin is back below $1,000. Aggressive selling on Friday has the cryptocurrency down 4.1% at $987 a coin as traders remain uneasy over its near-term outlook.
Traders continue to grapple with a number of headwinds. The future of bitcoin was called into question last weeekend as a rift among developers has created the possibility that a “hard fork,” or alternative marketplace could emerge, splitting the cryptocurrency in two. Additionally, traders have had to contend with a crackdown on trading in China, as well as the US Securities and Exchange Commission’s ruling against the Winklevoss twins’ ETF.
Friday’s selling has trade probing key support in the $1,000 area. Trade briefly broke below that level a couple of times over the past two weeks, but has been unable to close below it. The last time bitcoin ended a session below $1,000 was on February 9.
2017 has been a volatile year for bitcoin. It gained as much as 37%, putting in an all-time high of $1,327 a coin on March 10, but has fallen 25% after the SEC’s ruling on the Winklevoss ETF. Two more rulings are on the horizon with the first due out on, or before, March 30. Neither is expected to pass.
Bitcoin has been the top performing currency every year since 2010 aside from 2014.