The collapse followed bitcoin's worst ever start to a year, having traded close to $20,000 as recently as December. Ethereum, bitcoin cash and other major cryptocurrencies were also hit by the sudden downturn.
The notoriously volatile cryptocurrency continues to behave unpredictably – this live blog will be regularly updated with the latest news and significant changes.4 days ago
Bloomberg has been doing some digging into the bitcoin whale that many analysts believe prompted the recent price crash.
The case has all the elements of a classic Bitcoin mystery: famous wallets, a vicious cycle of speculation reinforcing a selloff and intense amateur sleuthing on the Internet that might not have exactly hit the mark. It also shows what makes Bitcoin unique: the pseudonymous, public nature of its blockchain means anyone can attempt to trace transactions.
Read the full story here.
1 week ago
Bitcoin remains down following its dramatic price falls last week, however it has managed to avoid any further losses.
Bitcoin: $6,351
Ethereum: $194
Ripple: $0.26
Bitcoin Cash: $470
EOS: $5.01
This is not the case for other major cryptocurrencies, with ethereum, ripple and bitcoin cash all seeing drops in value of between 2 and 3 per cent over the last 24 hours.
1 week ago
As bitcoin settles into a brief period of stability, analysts have been attempting to unpick the market-wide crash.
Theories range from the uncertainty surrounding Goldman Sachs' cryptocurrency trading desk, to a mass sell-off sparked by students needing cash as they head back to university.Bitcoin price crash: 'Manipulative whales' cause cryptocurrency market meltdown
Analysis suggest the $1,000 drop may be just the beginning
1 week ago
Bitcoin's price continued to tumble overnight, slipping below $6,500 to take its total losses to around $1,000 over the last 24 hours.
Bitcoin: $6,450
Ethereum: $228
Ripple: $0.28
Bitcoin Cash: $497
EOS: $5.06
The drop in value was mirrored and even magnifies among other major cryptocurrencies, with ethereum, bitcoin cash and EOS losing around 20 per cent of their value since this time yesterday.
1 week ago
Bitcoin just suffered a sudden and unexpected dip, dropping by $300 in the space of an hour.
Other major cryptocurrencies, including ethereum and ripple, have followed in its lead.
Ethereum, bitcoin cash and ripple all lose a tenth of their value in less than an hour amid market turmoil
1 week ago
The price of bitcoin has risen by almost $100 over the last 24 hours, to continue its recent run of good form.
Bitcoin: $7,379
Ethereum: $283
Ripple: $0.33
Bitcoin Cash: $627
EOS: $6.49
The 1 per cent jump in value wasn't mirrored by other major cryptocurrencies, with none of the top five shifting by more than 1 per cent since this time yesterday.
2 weeks ago
Bitcoin continues to a period of relative stability, having shifted by less than 1 per cent in price over the last 24 hours, according to CoinMarketCap.
Bitcoin: $7,297
Ethereum: $286
Ripple: $0.33
Bitcoin Cash: $627
EOS: $6.44
This trend has been mirrored across cryptocurrency markets, with none of the top five most valuable digital currencies experiencing any significant movement.
2 weeks ago
Bitcoin may have a new rival after one of the world's largest messaging apps announced the launch of its own cryptocurrency.
Japanese messaging giant Line said its new Link currency will be used among its 200 million users.Cryptocurrency markets are in meltdown and nobody knows why
Ethereum, bitcoin cash and ripple all lose a tenth of their value in less than an hour amid market turmoil
1 week ago
The price of bitcoin has risen by almost $100 over the last 24 hours, to continue its recent run of good form.
Bitcoin: $7,379
Ethereum: $283
Ripple: $0.33
Bitcoin Cash: $627
EOS: $6.49
The 1 per cent jump in value wasn't mirrored by other major cryptocurrencies, with none of the top five shifting by more than 1 per cent since this time yesterday.
2 weeks ago
Bitcoin continues to a period of relative stability, having shifted by less than 1 per cent in price over the last 24 hours, according to CoinMarketCap.
Bitcoin: $7,297
Ethereum: $286
Ripple: $0.33
Bitcoin Cash: $627
EOS: $6.44
This trend has been mirrored across cryptocurrency markets, with none of the top five most valuable digital currencies experiencing any significant movement.
2 weeks ago
Bitcoin may have a new rival after one of the world's largest messaging apps announced the launch of its own cryptocurrency.
Japanese messaging giant Line said its new Link currency will be used among its 200 million users.
The IndependentLink can be earned by users as a reward for using Line services
2 weeks ago
Bitcoin has managed to round off a relatively good week by holding close to $7,000.
Bitcoin: $6,976
Ethereum: $280
Ripple: $0.33
Bitcoin Cash: $537
EOS: $6.13
This is up almost $500 from this time last week for bitcoin, which has has a positive effect on the rest of the cryptocurrency markets.
2 weeks ago
Bitcoin's recent price rally has come despite some negative news for the cryptocurrency, including a ruling by the SEC to refuse a bitcoin ETF.
Its resurgence has confused Jordan Belfort, the disgraced Wall Street Banker whose crimes formed the plot of the Hollywood film The Wolf of Wall Street.
'I was a scammer,' Jordan Belfort said. 'I had it down to science, and it's exactly what's happening with bitcoin'
3 weeks ago
The price of bitcoin has seen slight gains over the last 24 hours, rising by around $100 to $6,550.
This comes despite a crack down on cryptocurrency in China, where more than 120 exchanges have been blocked.
China is poised to block more than 120 foreign cryptocurrency exchanges as part of the government’s broader crackdown on activities related to digital money, according to state media....
3 weeks ago
Bitcoin's brief resurgence didn't last long, dropping back to the same price it was trading at at the beginning of the week.
Bitcoin: $6,450
Ethereum: $275
Ripple: $0.33
Bitcoin Cash: $522
EOS: $4.78
The rest of the major cryptocurrencies experienced similar dips in value, according to CoinMarketCap, dropping by between 3 and 5 per cent over the last 24 hours.
3 weeks ago
Bitcoin has started the day well, climbing to a two-week high after shooting up by $400 in just 20 minutes. 
Bitcoin, the world's largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization has jumped 6.6 percent in quick succession pushing prices well above $6,600.
4 weeks ago
Bitcoin shifted in price by just 0.1 per cent since this time yesterday, continuing a week-long run of stability.
Bitcoin: $6,464
Ethereum: $285
Ripple: $0.33
Bitcoin Cash: $534
EOS: $5.34
The remarkable lack of market movement has been largely reflected by other major cryptocurrencies, according to CoinMarketCap, with ethereum, ripple and bitcoin cash all holding firm over the last 24 hours.
4 weeks ago
The first -ever state-backed cryptocurrency is proving integral in Venezuela's plans to rescue its collapsing economy.
Venezuela president announced that the country's bolivar currency will now be pegged to the petro cryptocurrency in the hope that it will increase economic stability.
Hyper-inflation of more than 1,000,000 per cent means 1 US dollar is now worth 6 million sovereign bolivar
4 weeks ago
Bitcoin has managed to remain relatively stable over the weekend, slipping by less than 1 per cent in value since Friday, according to CoinMarketCap.
Bitcoin: $6,427
Ethereum: $291
Ripple: $0.33
Bitcoin Cash: $543
EOS: $5.10
Stability reigned across the rest of the major cryptocurrencies, with bitcoin cash and EOS actually experiencing modest gains over the past two days.
1 month ago
The UK's Financial Conduct Authority warned today of a rise in cryptocurrency scams. Fraudsters have been using social media and fake celebrity endorsements to tempt victims.
"In recent months, the FCA has received an increasing number of reports about cryptocurrency investment scams, some of which may involve regulated activities, others which don’t, but all of which use similar tactics," the FCA said.
Dragons' Den star Deborah Meaden previously spoke out about fraudulent investment websites claiming to be endorsed by her
1 month ago
'Bitcoin will hit $15,000 by Christmas'
Cryptocurrency analyst Danny Scott, the co-founder of crypto exchange CoinCorner, says he expects bitcoin to stay around the $6,000 in the short term, but that by Christmas it will have almost trebled in price.
"For the last few months, the price of Bitcoin has been at $6,000 which we believe will continue for a while but we predict the price will reach $15,000 by the end of the year. We take this view because the retail market is continuing to expand at a very healthy rate based on both our own data and industry trends," Scott said in a statement shared with The Independent on Friday.
"To add to this, we are also seeing huge amounts of investment coming through from High Net Worth individuals and institutes purchasing Bitcoin in high volumes. This all adds to the increase and interest of the cryptocurrency.”
1 month ago
Bitcoin briefly peaked above $6,500 over night, before slipping slightly back below this morning. The positive movement builds on the mid-week stability to add 2 per cent to bitcoin's value since this time yesterday.
Bitcoin: $6,493
Ethereum: $300
Ripple: $0.31
Bitcoin Cash: $536
EOS: $4.87
Other significant price points have been reached by ethereum and bitcoin cash, breaking above $300 and $500 respectively. The gains signal a market-wide recovery for the world's top cryptocurrencies.
1 month ago
'Most cryptocurrencies have no function'
A new study of the top 100 most valuable cryptocurrencies has found that only 40 of them serve any useful function or provide "real value" to the public.
The study comes amid a market-wide crash for bitcoin, ethereum and other cryptocurrencies