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05-Feb-2018<br />

UPDATE: Bitcoin drops below $8,000 after another bank ban on credit-card buying hits<br />

<strong>news</strong>.morningstar.com<br />

Click to open<br />

The cryptocurrency selloff got a reboot on Monday, as bitcoin pushed below $8,000 on<br />

<strong>news</strong> a major U.K. bank had banned purchases of digital currencies via its credit cards.<br />

Bitcoin was most recently trading at $7,951, a drop of 2.9%, leaving it at levels not seen<br />

since late November. The spot price briefly fell below $8,000 on Friday<br />

(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/no-letup-for-bitcoin-as-cryptocurrency-drops-furtherbelow-9000-2018-02-02),<br />

then recharged and rose to as high as $9,471.46 on Saturday,<br />

before dropping back again, according to CoinDesk.com (https://www.coindesk.com/price/).<br />

Early Monday, the total market value of bitcoin stood at around $377 billion, according to<br />

CoinMarketCap (https://coinmarketcap.com/). The global cryptocurrency coughed up around<br />

$103 billion in about 24 hours at the end of last week.<br />

Meanwhile, Ether coins on the Ethereum blockchain lost 3.5% to $810.62, trading at levels<br />

not seen since the start of the year. Ripple coins shed 3.8% to change hands at 79 cents,<br />

and Litecoin dropped 4.2% to $143.55, according to CoinDesk.<br />

Fears of tighter regulation on trading of cryptocurrencies around the world have helped drive<br />

the selloff, with fresh concerns cropping up on Monday via <strong>news</strong> from U.K. banking giant<br />

Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY.LN)(LLOY.LN) .<br />

"Across Lloyds Bank, Bank of Scotland, Halifax and MBNA, we do not accept credit card<br />

transactions involving the purchase of cryptocurrencies," said a Lloyds Banking Group<br />

spokesperson.<br />

"It's a case of protecting our credit card customers from the risks associated with the price<br />

volatility of cryptocurrencies," said the spokesperson, in emailed comments.<br />

The move comes after several bank and card issuers, including Bank of America Corp.<br />

(BAC) , said they would be reviewing their policies around the buying of crypto assets using<br />

credit cards. Capital One Financial Corp. (COF) banned customers from using credit cards<br />

to purchase bitcoin or coins on the Ethereum blockchain, The Wall Street Journal has<br />

reported (https://www.wsj.com/articles/should-you-buy-bitcoin-with-your-credit-card-<br />

1516897097).<br />

Read: 5 reasons virtual currencies have shed a half-trillion dollars in less than a month<br />

(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/5-reasons-virtual-currencies-have-shed-a-half-trilliondollars-in-less-than-a-month-2018-02-02)<br />

Included in last week's regulatory jabs at bitcoin and its rivals<br />

(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/no-letup-for-bitcoin-as-cryptocurrency-drops-furtherbelow-9000-2018-02-02),<br />

was <strong>news</strong> that Facebook Inc. (FB) will no longer allow<br />

cryptocurrency ads to run, and India's finance minister, who said cryptocurrencies aren't<br />

viewed by officials as a form of legal tender.<br />

Opinion: These early retirees won't touch bitcoin or other cryptos -- and neither should you<br />

(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/why-these-early-retirees-wont-touch-bitcoin-or-othercryptos-and-neither-should-you-2018-02-02)<br />

Atulya Sarin:Regulators should keep their hands off bitcoin and blockchain<br />

(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/how-bitcoin-and-blockchain-can-truly-become-internet-<br />

30-2018-01-16)<br />

February bitcoin futures on the Cboe Global Markets Inc. dropped 7.5% to $7,860, while<br />

comparable futures on the CME Group Inc. lost 9% to $7,810.<br />

-Barbara Kollmeyer; 415-439-6400; AskNewswires@dowjones.com<br />

(END) Dow Jones Newswires<br />

02-05-18 0543ET<br />

Copyright (c) 2018 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.

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