Festive Bitcoin Blues

The crypto market is feeling more like the Grinch than Santa this Christmas, with the largest cryptocurrency, Bitcoin (BTC), tumbling over 9% to settle around $3,812. After a brief holiday cheer, where it soared beyond $4,236 on Christmas Eve, it’s now trading at levels reminiscent of a sad Christmas movie about financial ruin.

Ripple and Ethereum Join the Sorrow

It’s not just Bitcoin feeling the holiday blues. Ripple (XRP) has taken a 15% nosedive, trading at $0.38. It had a brief moment of glory at $0.45 just yesterday, but now it’s crying into its coin purse. Meanwhile, Ethereum (ETH) is down over 18%, now hovering at $127 after breaking through the $150 barrier just yesterday — talk about roller coasters!

Bitcoin Cash and Friends Suffer Too

Bitcoin Cash (BCH) can’t catch a break either, down nearly 20.7% to $164, even though it’s had a wild ride recently — up a staggering 113% on its weekly chart. And here’s a fun fact: 16 out of the top 20 cryptocurrencies have joined the red party today, with losses ranging from 10% to 19%. Adios, holiday bonuses!

Market Cap and the Grim Reality

The total cryptocurrency market cap is sinking like a ship, currently sitting at $128.8 billion — quite a drop from the over $147.8 billion it enjoyed just a day prior. For reference, it started the week at a mere $114.2 billion. Feels like the jingle bells have transformed into alarm bells!

Bright Sides Amidst the Gloom

But wait! Not all news is bad. TRON (TRX) hit a milestone with over one million user accounts this week despite the market crash. Talk about resilience! Also, the Japanese internet giant GMO Internet Group has decided to exit the Bitcoin mining hardware business, citing “extraordinary loss” in Q4. It’s a tough Christmas for crypto, but there’s always next year, right?