The crypto markets took a US$3bn hit this Wednesday, as Bitcoin dipped below US$23,000 while Ethereum fell 5.5% to US$1,680.
Among the worst hit were Cosmos blockchain’s ATOM coin, which saw a double-digit hit to its now US$3bn market capitalisation, and Oasis Network, whose ROSE coin dipped over 10%.
Kusama, Helium and Dash network were also among the biggest daily fallers.
The Nexo lending platform and iFinex’s LEO token were among the few daily risers, adding 4.4% and 3.8% respectively.
One the worst hit In the decentralised finance (DeFi) space was decentralised stablecoin exchange Curve, who also had to deal with a US$570,000 server hack.
1inch Network, Synthetix and Compound Finance also took a tumble.
Total volume locked across the whole DeFi space is currently US$66.78bn, having declined 2.7% in the past 24 hours.
In the news
Contributing to the sharp drawback in an otherwise steady week were the US$1.1bn in operating losses reported in Coinbase’s latest earnings call.
NASDAQ-listed crypto exchange shed 200,000 users in the second quarter, while trading volumes on the platform dropped by nearly a third.
German cryptocurrency exchange Nuri has filed for bankruptcy in the Berlin courts, Reuters reports.
Founded in 2015, the exchange blamed poor market conditions, the Celsius bankruptcy, and uncertainty in the financial markets.
The Iranian government has placed a US$10mln import order using Bitcoin, the first such transaction for the Islamic republic.
Alireza Peyman-Pak, head of Iran’s Trade Promotion Organisation, said: “By the end of September, the use of cryptocurrencies and smart contracts will be widespread in foreign trade with target countries.”
