Bitcoin Touches $6,000 Mark as Cryptocurrency Exodus Continues

The price of digital currency bitcoin dropped to the $6,000 mark on Tuesday as heavy losses continued amid a broad based selloff in cryptocurrencies triggered by fears over a regulatory crackdown.

Bitcoin was trading at $6,220.80 by 04:02 AM ET (09:02 AM GMT) on the Bitfinex exchange, after falling as low as $6,000 earlier, the weakest level since mid-November.

Bitcoin is down more than 60% from its record high of $19,891 in mid-December.

Cryptocurrency prices have fallen sharply since early January as governments clamped down on trading and major banks implemented a ban on using credit cards to buy digital currencies.

Prices have also been hit by fears over whether last year’s breathtaking rally in digital assets was justified.

Cryptocurrency regulation looked likely to remain in focus on Tuesday as lawmakers in the U.S. Senate prepared to question the heads of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the Securities and Exchange Commission over how to better regulate the virtual currency market.

Ethereum, the world’s second largest cryptocurrency by market cap, traded down around 25% at $594 on the Bitfinex exchange.

The third largest cryptocurrency Ripple fell around 20% to $0.60.

The steep drop in cryptocurrencies this week has coincided with a rout in global equities.

Take Advantage of the New Cryptocurrency Economy - HODL!

Yes, you read that right, hodling. This is the practice of holding on to a long-term investment without giving in to the urge to sell, it is misspelled deliberately for dramatic effect to mimic an investor frantically trying to type the word “HOLD!”

If you plan to join the legion of cryptocurrency "hodlers", the stepping stone should probably be the "Blue Chip" of cryptocurrencies, which is the Bitcoin of course - With a market cap far exceeding any other cryptocurrency, Bitcoin Hodling is the way to go.

Many cryptocurrency investors claim that they have made more money from holding onto an investment long term instead of trading. It might be best for everyone to just HODL the cryptocurrency, and only trade if you have previous experience, trading is not for noobs