Bitcoin down 17% as it was introduced as legal tender in El Salvador

The value of Bitcoin fell by as much as 17%, today, Tuesday, to its lowest level in a month, in conjunction with the introduction of the cryptocurrency in El Salvador.

The largest cryptocurrency fell to 43 thousand dollars in New York, after it fell by more than 10% in just one hour, and before it recovered nearly half of its losses later, according to Bloomberg.
Meanwhile, the Bloomberg Galaxy Crypto Index, which tracks some of the biggest cryptocurrencies, lost as much as 19% at one point.

“Ambiguous sell-offs, or sell-offs when a legitimate cause has been found only for a short period, are more common in cryptocurrencies than in other asset classes,” said Stefan Owlett, CEO and co-founder of Front Financial.

“The market remains more uncertain and global than most – if not all – other notable asset classes,” he added.
The downward speed may have accelerated with more than 336,000 traders liquidated over the past few hours, equivalent to roughly $3.6 billion in cryptocurrency, according to data from Bibit, a cryptocurrency futures information and trading platform.

The decline comes as Bitcoin faces one of its biggest tests in its 12-year history, with El Salvador becoming the first country to adopt it as a legal currency, amid internal and external concerns.