The UK plans to crack down on digital currencies, and Bitcoin once plunged more than $1,000

A report from the British media caused Bitcoin to plummet again early this morning.

At 4:30 Beijing time today, the British Daily Telegraph reported that the British government has launched a plan to crack down on Bitcoin due to concerns that Bitcoin will be used for money laundering and tax evasion.

Almost at the same time, the price of Bitcoin on the Bitstamp platform fell rapidly, from a low of $11,800 to less than $10,600 in an hour and a half, a drop of more than $1,000.

The Daily Telegraph reported that the anonymous nature of transactions makes Bitcoin and other digital currencies convenient for criminals and tax evaders. In response, the UK Treasury revealed a regulatory plan that will require all digital currency trading participants to disclose their identity information and report suspicious trading activities.

The report mentioned that the UK Treasury expressed its hope to ensure that transactions comply with relevant laws and regulations such as anti-money laundering and anti-terrorist financial activities through the regulation of virtual currencies.

John Mann, a member of the UK Treasury Select Committee, said he expects to hold a meeting in the new year on strengthening the regulation of Bitcoin and other virtual currencies. He was quoted as saying:

These new forms of exchange are expanding rapidly and we need to make sure we don’t fall behind. This is especially important in areas such as money laundering, terrorism and theft.

I think the regulators have not caught up, and it would be a big surprise if the committee doesn't hold an inquiry next year.

Before this sharp drop, Bitcoin's recent performance has been thrilling.

On the evening of November 29, Bitcoin quickly broke through $11,000, reaching a high of $11,395, an increase of more than 10% in a day. At that time, only 12 hours had passed since Bitcoin reached the $10,000 mark.

But soon, Bitcoin began to turn downward rapidly and plummeted due to the temporary interruption of Bitcoin exchange transactions. The trading platform GDAX showed that at around 3:00 a.m. Beijing time on November 30, Bitcoin fell below $8,600, down more than 20% from its high point more than five hours ago, entering a technical bear market.

On the morning of November 30, according to data from the trading platform GDAX, the price of Bitcoin rebounded by more than 20%. It took Bitcoin nearly 6 hours to go from a bull market to a technical bear market, and it took only 3 hours to "make a comeback" and enter a technical bull market.

Yesterday, Bitstamp data showed that Bitcoin rose more than 7% that day, setting a record high of $11,670.