What happened
Cryptocurrency assets like Coinbase Global (COIN +1.20%) and cryptocurrencies Dogecoin (DOGE +6.81%), Ethereum (ETH +7.47%), and Bitcoin (BTC +3.15%) were down between 3% and 5% this morning but have since recovered more than half of the losses.
So what
Sharp moves in the cryptocurrency space are nothing new; however, the past week has seen a wide divergence between the prices and other risk assets like the technology-laden Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ 0.59%).
Bitcoin Price data by YCharts
As global stock markets plunged on Monday, the prices of all cryptocurrency-related assets dropped. Yet, as markets recovered on Tuesday, the prices of cryptocurrencies remain under pressure. The trend of underperformance has been in place since mid-May.
Bitcoin Price data by YCharts
Now what
There is no indication the selling will end anytime soon. Trading volume in Bitcoin at the largest exchanges fell 40% in June. That said, volume can't be the main factor. Although institutional products related to Bitcoin have seen outflows over nine of the past 10 weeks, the reverse has been true of Ethereum. And its price is also off more than 50%.
Image source: Getty Images.
Perhaps the best explanation is China's continued crackdown on cryptocurrency miners. The country is preparing to launch its own digital currency. In late June, it ordered a stop to operations in some provinces that were responsible for at least half of all Bitcoin mining power on earth.
Adding salt in the wound, U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell recently said creating a digital dollar is a high priority. The glass-half-full view is that governments are validating the concept and usefulness of cryptocurrency. For now, the half-empty perspective is dominating.
Earlier today, the Securities and Exchange Commission revealed it had shut down an alleged cryptocurrency-based Ponzi scheme run by an 86-year-old woman and her 54-year-old son. News like that certainly won't help to change the negative sentiment.
