The correction was inevitable. And everyone who has any experience trading (anything from stocks to commodities to even real estate speculation) knew it would at some point tip and slide.
So with that said; I think that despite whatever news source may be reporting at this hour; the primary factor alone is: Market Correction.
The economy in general has been on a very long bull run, with the stock market on one of the longest bull markets in history. It as well will correct; market dynamics and greed will at some point set in, investors will begin to sell and take their profits, once this begins it cascades, and the profit taking transforms into a slippery slope of fear, with investors who need not even liquidate their positions selling off in whole in fearing they will lose it all. Which time has told us is ridiculous.
So with that said; it was coming. It had risen so high, people began to take their profits. This includes individual traders, large companies who accept BTC through merchant sales; and investors/traders; many of whom trade on margin, and highly leveraged levels.
Once BTC tipped from it's high at roughly $20,000, I believe the news had very little to do with the further decline. Now why do I say this?
Because Bitcoin has, for all it's existence, been in the limelight of bad press. From the Mt. Gox Scandal, to Silk Road, to the various exchanges which failed or "lost" coins amounting to huge sums of money; Bitcoin has always had it's share of bad press.
Secondly; Bitcoin has always faced increasing scrutiny; regulation; and outright banning, by various governments around the world. So the recent news of increased and/or tightened restrictions I think has less to do with the decline than one would really think.
The truth of the matter is that major news networks tend to ignore Bitcoin related stories. At times they will cover specific milestones or huge movements, but the day to day swings and changes in what is allowed here, or what happened there, are overlooked by completely other unrelated news.
A lot of this has to do with the fact that goes back to the old saying: "Any Press is Good Press". The News Organizations know this. It's publicity, free publicity. With that said:
The companies and industries which vehemently oppose even the concept of Bitcoin the most are: Financial Institutions. Why? Bitcoin fundamentally circumvents them. Bitcoin completely bypasses the banks, credit cards, and savings and trusts acting as the man in the middle (trusted third party), whom facilitate the nearly all commercial transactions both online and in brick and mortar stores between buyers and sellers, which of course they do for a fee, and they then charge interest, and late fees on.
These fees, generate obscene amounts of profit for them. And for that fee, they promise to safeguard your money, cover your transaction in the case of fraud, and so on.
Watch any major news network for 30 minutes, and count how many Bank, Credit Card, and Financial Service commercials are shown between the stories. The financial establishments are in the top percentile of dollars spent on advertising, and the networks are in no hurry to upset their largest and highest paying customers.
This is why one, and we, as a community, should never expect major news organizations to give Bitcoin the credit it deserves. CNN, MSNBC, BBC, FOX NEWS, they are in the business of MAKING MONEY. And yes reporting on the news- the news that will attract the highest ratings, so their ratings and audience grows, and they can charge more per 15 spot or 30 spot of commercial air time.
This is why Bitcoin gets such a bad wrap. The news organizations biggest customers want them to make it clear to the world. Bitcoin is bad.
Now, as far as all of the news stories we read on sites that specifically cater to cryptocurrency news (I'll leave them unnamed)... They are still in their infancy, likely get a lot of their stories from writer/reporters who are simply covering the news. The news covering the news in a sense.
Which is why I don't think the correction has very much to do with anything but the fact that a correction was coming. Period.
Bitcoin has always had bad press. It's always been wrapped up in illegal activities. As if no one has ever bought drugs, guns, or run a ponzi scheme with actual money right? That only happens to those who dare get involved with cryptocurrencies.
The truth is Bitcoin went from practially pennies to $1250. Then it corrected to basically $350-$600. There were lows below that, and highs above that, but thats where it traded for quite some time.
Now we've seen it go from $1000 to $20,000. The correction is normal.
In the end, Bitcoin is here to stay. It will continue to grow. It will gain wider adoption. More, especially the younger generations will become increasingly interested in it from both a technology standpoint and a world changing commercial tool.
Everyone knows the Banks are crooked. How many financial scandals and fallouts have we seen in just the last two decades.
But right now not yet everyone knows Bitcoin for what it really is. That will take time. But it's proven to last this long, and now, it is here to stay. And with that said:
We have another Block Halving approaching in a little over 2 years. This will make the block reward drop again from 12.5 to 6.25 BTC. This will be a huge component in how BTC is priced, because it will change the economics of mining full circle.
We will see further adoption. More people using it to send money and also as a investment.
We will see more altcoins, many will come and go, but some will grow to very large market caps, allowing for low cost transactions and better features and ease of use.
And with all that, Bitcoin will rise.
I think $20,000 was quite an accomplishment. I personally called the top at $15,000, and didn't think it would move much past that.
Bitcoin will surprise us, and the world. I don't see it at all unrealistic, to have a world where BTC is trading in the $100,000 or much higher range.
The question is when that will happen, and who will have been smart enough to hold.
Cheers!
Strato