LONDON (Reuters) – As worries over the economic hit from the coronavirus outbreak spread from stocks, oil and bonds to cryptocurrencies late last week, bitcoin crashed to its worst day in seven years. But plummeting prices weren’t the only problem for investors.
FILE PHOTO: Illumination of the stock graph is seen on the representations of virtual currency Bitcoin in this picture illustration taken taken March 13, 2020. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic
As volatility and volumes spiked, the infrastructure underpinning digital coin trading creaked under the strain.
Futures exchanges saw a rash of electronically-triggered liquidations of leveraged positions, fuelling pressure on prices. Spreads between exchanges jumped. And at least two major exchanges went down, leaving investors locked out of the market for well over an hour.
Bitcoin prices collapsed nearly 40% on March 12, the biggest one-day drop since spring 2013, before jumping 16% a day later.
Volatility raced to its highest in seven…
Source Reuters Tech News
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