Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies recover losses after Thanksgiving

Corrections and Clarifications: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated the year Bitcoin hit its previous low.

What a difference a year can make. Last year, Bitcoin was in the middle of a 217 percent rally at that time, which peaked at $ 20,000 in December.

Now the largest cryptocurrency is struggling to stay above $ 4,000 – it lost nearly 28 percent in value this week and briefly hit its lowest level since September 2017 at $ 3,477.58 in early Sunday trading, according to data from CoinDesk in early Sunday trading.

In evening trading, it rebounded to $ 4,029.42, up 5.4 percent from its 24-hour opening price. Other cryptocurrencies also finally entered positive territory in late trading. Ethereum was up 3.7 percent from its 24-hour opening, while Litecoin was up 7.9 percent. According to CoinDesk, XRP increased by almost 1 percent.

This week’s sell-off marked the biggest one-week decline since April 2013, when Bitcoin lost over 44 percent of its value, according to CoinDesk.

The cryptocurrency’s recent troubles started in mid-November when it fell below $ 6,000. That was a U-turn after relatively stable October when US stocks stalled.

The enthusiasm for Bitcoin has decreased dramatically since last Christmas time. The cryptocurrency jumped from $ 6,088.35 in mid-November 2017 to $ 19,326.49 on December 17, 2017. In 2018, Bitcoin is down almost 70 percent over the year to date.

Cryptocurrencies in general are subject to increased regulatory scrutiny, which is putting their values ​​under pressure.

In mid-November, the Securities and Exchange Commission imposed the first civil sanctions on a cryptocurrency company. Both CarrierEQ, which operates as Airfox, and Paragon Coin have reached an agreement with the agency over registration violations as part of a broader SEC action against fraud and abuse in the industry.

Citing three unnamed sources, Bloomberg News also reported last week that the U.S. Department of Justice is investigating whether market manipulation caused the 2017 Bitcoin rally.