Crypto Markets Unexpectedly Renew Downward Momentum After Brief Interlude

The cryptocurrency markets have taken a sudden plunge once again this morning, driving down prices and raising new fears on the extreme volatility of digital currencies.

Nov. 15th’s disastrous meltdown appeared to stabilize by the end of last week, and most of the top ten cryptocurrencies began the slow climb back. Not so this morning, as bitcoin and the rest of the top ten went back into meltdown mode.

Bitcoin has breached the key $5,000 mark, down to $4,800 on super high volume, a drop of .  Meanwhile, XRP is down close to 7%, ether has dropped to $150, and Stellar, EOS and Litecoin are all down double digits.

Bitcoin Cash and the fears its hard fork created is being blamed in most quarters for the drastic price declines. Fear-mongering pundits have once again emerged, deriding the extreme volatility and casting doubt on cryptocurrency’s future. While that’s an interesting theory, it doesn’t explain the extreme reaction this morning, since the market briefly stabilized last week.

What’s more likely is this is the capitulation phase of the meltdown. Investors had the weekend to assess their holdings, and now the cold feet crowd are liquidating their positions. It may also be a reaction to the SEC’s letter outlining the regulations that will likely turn off the ICO spigot and turn the entire process of starting a company in the sector into a slow crawl.