Markets Weekly: Bitcoin Price Drops as Coinbase Euphoria Wanes

Following a price spike on major announcements from Coinbase two weeks ago, the bitcoin price has fallen back below $250.

AccessTimeIconFeb 2, 2015 at 2:56 p.m. UTC
Updated Mar 2, 2023 at 10:34 p.m. UTC

Presented By Icon

Election 2024 coverage presented by

Stand with crypto

The bitcoin price has fallen 11% over the last seven days, opening at $254.51 on 26th January and closing at $226.40 on 1st February, according to the CoinDesk Bitcoin Price Index.

The price spiked at the start of the week, however, when it hit a high of $307.97 on the back of major announcements from Coinbase, which included its record-setting $75m funding round and the launch of its US-based exchange. The price jumped by more than $50 in intra-day trading.

  • Bitcoin Mining in the U.S. Will Become 'a Lot More Decentralized': Core Scientific CEO
    13:18
    Bitcoin Mining in the U.S. Will Become 'a Lot More Decentralized': Core Scientific CEO
  • Binance to Discontinue Its Nigerian Naira Services After Government Scrutiny
    05:10
    Binance to Discontinue Its Nigerian Naira Services After Government Scrutiny
  • The first video of the year 2024
    04:07
    The first video of the year 2024
  • The last regression video of the year 3.67.0
    40:07
    The last regression video of the year 3.67.0
  • Price gains were quickly lost again as successive trading sessions took their toll. The biggest dip occurred on Wednesday, as the price fell by about $30. By Saturday, a bitcoin was trading at $216.

    A gain would come on Sunday, as the week closed, taking the bitcoin price to as high as $231.92, but closing at the $226 mark. This closed a trading week book-ended by significant gains that were ultimately outweighed by losses.

    Regulations and exchanges in spotlight

    Even as the initial bullish sentiment around the announcement of Coinbase's new exchange wore off, the launch left a trail of questions in its wake.

    State regulators in California and New York both made statements refuting initial reports that Coinbase's exchange had been licensed to operate there. The firm responded, saying that it was operating in a regulatory "grey zone" that allowed it to take customers from those states.

    The district attorney of Manhattan meanwhile told a gathering of anti-money laundering specialists that he was watching efforts to take bitcoin "mainstream" like the Coinbase exchange with "intense interest". Cyrus R Vance Jr said regulated exchanges benefited law enforcement efforts to police terror and financial crime.

    Other exchanges seemed intent to re-double their efforts for market-share. Hong Kong-based ANX acquired CoinMKT in a bid to expand in the US market. Japan's BitFlyer raised a third round of financing as it planned to expand overseas, hinting at the possibility of a Singapore outpost.

    In the UK, the team behind an authorised e-money issuer has launched an exchange called DSX linked to that entity, creating a level of scrutiny over the fiat funds that must flow through the issuer before entering the exchange.

    Troubles for miners, meanwhile, continued apace. It was revealed that CoinTerra has filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy, amidst a rash of complaints made by customers of the firm made with the Federal Trade Commission that were published after a Freedom of Information request made by CoinDesk.

    Volume rose significantly

    Exchanges recorded a healthy increase in volume over the week, with 5.34 million coins changing hands between 25th and 21st January, according to data from Bitcoinity. This represented an increase of 33% over the previous seven-day period.

    The major US dollar exchanges, Bitfinex and Bitstamp, recorded significant volume increases, with Bitfinex showing a 71% rise in volume and Bitstamp showing volume growth of 62% for the period.

    A note about data: Volume data for ANX has been excluded from weekly volume aggregation because Bitcoinity has over-counted the exchange's total volume in its aggregation function. ANX uses a "blended" order book that shows total volume traded across all currency pairs, according to Jess Chan of ANX.

    Bitcoinity summed this data for each currency pair, causing ANX's total volume to be over-stated. This issue was first raised last week by Kraken's Brian Bowman.

    Disclosure

    Please note that our privacy policy, terms of use, cookies, and do not sell my personal information have been updated.

    CoinDesk is an award-winning media outlet that covers the cryptocurrency industry. Its journalists abide by a strict set of editorial policies. CoinDesk has adopted a set of principles aimed at ensuring the integrity, editorial independence and freedom from bias of its publications. CoinDesk is part of the Bullish group, which owns and invests in digital asset businesses and digital assets. CoinDesk employees, including journalists, may receive Bullish group equity-based compensation. Bullish was incubated by technology investor Block.one.


    Learn more about Consensus 2024, CoinDesk's longest-running and most influential event that brings together all sides of crypto, blockchain and Web3. Head to consensus.coindesk.com to register and buy your pass now.