BNB Leads Crypto Market Crash on December 17, 2022
In the early hours of December 17, the cryptocurrency market experienced a new downturn, wiping out all the gains made over the past week.
Top Cryptocurrency Price Movements at 08:35 AM on December 17, 2022. Source: Coin360
What was anticipated to be a week of recovery for Bitcoin and major cryptocurrencies, fueled by positive news about cooling U.S. inflation and the Fed slowing interest rate hikes, has been completely erased in the past 24 hours.
On the afternoon of December 16, news spread that Mazars, the auditing firm for major exchanges like Binance, KuCoin, and Crypto.com, had abruptly terminated its partnership with these crypto companies and removed its asset verification reports. Additionally, Bitvavo, a Dutch exchange, announced it could not withdraw $280 million held at Digital Currency Group, further alarming the community about the health of this entity and its subsidiary, Genesis Trading.
Details: Dutch Exchange Bitvavo 'Trapped' with €280 Million at Digital Currency Group
Since then, BTC's price has dropped from $17,500 to $16,527, falling below its previous high before the U.S. inflation data and Fed rate adjustment.
1h BTC/USDT Chart on Binance at 08:35 AM on December 17, 2022
The hardest hit has been BNB, Binance's native coin. BNB is down over 12% in the past 24 hours, trading at $224 – its lowest value since July 2022.
Additionally, Binance has faced various negative headlines recently, including an investigation by the U.S. for alleged money laundering, account freezes due to social media disputes, and technical issues with third parties, leading to user losses. As a result, Binance saw a massive $6 billion withdrawal wave within 24 hours earlier this week, and the stablecoin BUSD briefly depegged.
1h BNB/USDT Chart on Binance at 08:35 AM on December 17, 2022
Another major cryptocurrency, Ethereum (ETH), has also adjusted to $1,155, while top altcoins have dropped 8-10%.
1h ETH/USDT Chart on Binance at 08:35 AM on December 17, 2022
In the past 12 hours, the liquidation of derivatives on the market has exceeded $137 million, with nearly 92% being long positions.
Crypto Liquidation Value in the Past 12 Hours, Data from Coinglass at 08:35 AM on December 17, 2022
The total cryptocurrency market capitalization fell to $760 billion this morning, marking its lowest level since December 2020.
Crypto Market Capitalization Fluctuations, Screenshot from TradingView on the Morning of December 17, 2022
