Altcoins
Bitcoin Market Wrap Up 5/10-5/17: BTC Plunges, Ripple Still Down, EAC Up
Nigel Dollentas · @https://twitter.com/nigeldollentas | May 18, 2015 | 08:00
Since last week’s Market Wrap Up, Bitcoin has taken a dive in price, dipping 2.25% from a high of around $244 to $236.50 as of press time. Compared to the mid-week update over on BTC.com, the change is much more sudden as the plunge from $244 to $236 occurred in the later hours of May 13.
Also Read: Last Week’s Market Wrap Up
There seems to be no bad “seed” of news that whales could be using to manipulate the price. However, Bitcoin does not take a nosedive without a reason; chatter on social media channels are hinting at “calm before the storm” scenarios, with this price dive serving as a last-minute opportunity to accumulate some more Bitcoin.
Bitcoin may also be correcting itself from the rather bullish market movement from last week, with a peak nearing $249, jumping $20 in two days.
Since the plunge, however, we have seen relative stability with only minor fluctuations up and down. What in my eyes is of bigger concern is the sudden drop in volume. The normal volume of $15-$20 million in a 24 hour period has been reduced to barely $10 million.
It seems Bitcoin’s price downtrend is an isolated incident; the rest of the cryptocurrency ecosystem is not falling, which is a relief.
While Bitcoin’s plunge was an isolated incident, it certainly wasn’t the only cryptocurrency to take a beating this week. Ripple is still depreciating, a pattern continued from last week.
Altcoin Market Analysis
Slowly and steadily, Ripple has lost 14.17% value compared to seven days ago. Even though this downtrend show no signs of stopping, Ripple still holds a hefty chunk of the total cryptocurrency market capitalization. However, there is still a ~$150 million gap between Ripple and Litecoin.
Earthcoin performed the strongest out of the top 100 cryptocurrencies. Currently up 83% for this week, Earthcoin has nearly doubled in value.
With a volume that is also nearing $30,000, Earthcoin has the 8th highest trading volume this week, proving that it has attracted a number of traders to its market. I find it odd, however, that just like Bitcoin, there is no “hype” surrounding EarthCoin.
The last tweet from EarthCoin’s twitter was 10 days ago, while its Reddit was last updated 26 days ago. Regardless, EarthCoin is definitely an altcoin I would keep an eye on. While charts show stable, consistent growth, no one knows how long trends continue in the world of cryptocurrency.
Where do you think Bitcoin is headed? Will Ripple still fall in value continuing on to next week? Let us know in the comments below!
Photo Sources: CMC, BitcoinCharts
This author’s views do not necessarily reflect those of Bitcoinist.net.
