2016 may have been a dynamic year for the price of bitcoin, but 2017 is shaping up to be a dramatic one already.
Bitcoin's race past $1,000 (and subsequent gyrations above
and below that line) have already sparked headlines (both good and bad)
worldwide, as today's dramatic fall from above $1,100 drove a massive influx of
interest in the the digital currency.
If you’re just tuning in to the action, you may be wondering
how things got to this point in the first place.
To get you up to speed, it may be helpful to look back at
the past week's major price developments that took exchange markets near new
all-time highs – and, as today showed, dramatic lows.
Bitcoin aims all-time high!
Things began heating up within a few short days.
As reported by CoinDesk on 4th January, early trading this
week saw the digital currency’s price drift ever higher after crossing the
$1,000 line.
A high of $1,060 meant that the price was inching closer to
its all-time high of $1,165.89, reached on 30th November, 2013, according to
data from the CoinDesk Bitcoin Price Index (BPI).
It was during this time as well that mainstream media
sources, including The New York Times and The Washington Post began taking
note, which continues to today
Heading down the hill?
This morning’s dramatic price plunge, however, would cast a
shadow on those bullish sentiments.
Just hours after climbing closer to the all-time high set in
2013, market averages suddenly tumbled. Markets had been fluctuating between
the $1,080 and $1,070 lines, according to BPI data, before falling to as low as
$887.47.
Overall, USD-denominated markets fell as much 23%, with
CNY-denominated markets tumbling more than 15% as well.
However, in the hours since, the price of bitcoin has
recovered. At press time, the average market price is $978.25.
Conclusion
Of course, we'd be remiss to note that bitcoin is an
open-source technology – meaning, tweaks to its core protocol are ongoing.
Amidst all the ups and downs, a number of bug fixes were
released that showcase how bitcoin could continue to evolve and become more
useful, even in the face of challenges.
