Bitcoin price plummets by nearly $600 in one day, Bitcoin veteran says he's seen worse

The price of Bitcoin plummeted from $2,800 to $2,460 yesterday (currently around $2,250 on Coinbase at press time), and not only that, but almost all altcoins also fell sharply at the same time, and the sudden plunge quickly caused concern and speculation in the cryptocurrency community.

The crash came during the biggest Bitcoin bull run in the cryptocurrency’s history, leading to a flood of panicked posts on social media, with one Reddit user writing:

"2800 to 2460, WTF?!!! - A sad Reddit user."

Many new Bitcoin users were attracted to cryptocurrency investment by the current upward cycle of the market. Now they can't help but express their concerns, but Bitcoin veterans remain relatively calm. They have experienced such a crash before, and even worse than this time.

“Whatever happens, it’s a good thing, guys. We need to fall. Only through this can we gain enlightenment. — Akado (@AkadoSang) May 25, 2017”

Welcome to Bitcoin

The drop comes after a three-day rally in bitcoin prices, which saw the price of bitcoin rise from $2,000 to an all-time high of $2,800. In financial markets, price corrections like this are not uncommon after a short-term surge, and can actually cool down a frenzy. Given bitcoin's previous surge, the magnitude of this price correction is not particularly large, which should give investors some comfort.

Notable price fluctuations in Bitcoin history

Bitcoin's history is famous for large price fluctuations, and the price of Bitcoin can even drop by several orders of magnitude in a matter of minutes. In August 2011, Bitcoin plunged nearly 50% in 7 hours, from $13.5 to just $7. However, Bitcoin's resilience is also very famous, and the price of Bitcoin soon broke through $80 again.

Another example is the famous Bitcoin crash in 2013, which is often attributed to the collapse of the notorious Japanese Bitcoin exchange Mt.Gox, also known as the "Gateway Incident" in Bitcoin history. The exchange eventually collapsed and investors lost a lot of Bitcoin. This crash took a long time for Bitcoin to recover, and then the cryptocurrency began to move towards a bull market.

Since 2015, Bitcoin has been rising slowly and steadily, but since March of this year, it has begun to rise at a disproportionate rate.

It’s no surprise that after such a massive run-up, Bitcoin fever seems to be back.