The Christmas cheer seems to have been lost in the cryptocurrency market. Major tokens including Bitcoin, Ethereum and Ripple all closed lower on Friday than their previous close. The price plunge came amid heightened market volatility.
However, this may change as optimism grows that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will approve a spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) by January 10, 2024. The crypto market’s decline is partly attributed to inactivity from whales and investors, who may have taken a week off for the holidays.
All major cryptocurrencies were in the red on Saturday, with OG coin Bitcoin (BTC) down 1.6% to $42,030 per BTC. Interestingly, 24-hour trading volume increased by 0.7% to $23.7 billion. Notably, Bitcoin has appreciated by 10% in the past 30 days and is up 153% so far this year.
Meanwhile, Ethereum, the second-largest cryptocurrency by market cap, fell more than 2% to $2,300. Its trading volume plunged more than 25% to $10.94 billion in the past 24 hours.
Other major tokens have also recorded losses in the past 24 hours. While Tether (USDT) is down 0.04% to $1, BNB is trading at $317.22 as of writing, down 1.31% in the past 24 hours. Solana (SOL), XRP, and Cardano (ADA) are down 0.84%, 1.46%, and 1.29%, respectively.
The decline in major token prices was reflected in the overall cryptocurrency market capitalization, which fell 1.37% in the past 24 hours to $1.65 trillion, with 24-hour trading volume plunging more than 17% to $64.36 billion.
Here are the hottest cryptocurrencies today
Litecoin (LTC) plunges more than 5%
Litecoin (LTC) last changed hands at $73.22, down 5.2% in the past 24 hours. Trading volume in the past 24 hours has fallen by nearly 24% to $460 million. Despite recent market volatility, the altcoin has appreciated by more than 4% in the past 30 days.
Litecoin price chart. Image source: CoinMarketCap
ORDI rose nearly 7%
Despite the recent market pullback, ORDI price has increased by nearly 6% in the past 24 hours, with the token trading at 78.12% at press time. 24-hour trading volume has surged 79% to $955.83 million. In the past seven days alone, ORDI tokens have appreciated by 58%, which may be due to the recent Bitcoin bull run.
