Infographic: A Year Of Ups And Downs For Bitcoin

Bitcoin was all but forgotten about, but the blockchain digital currency is back in the news. At the end of June, Bitcoin seemingly came back to life after a prolonged period of losses and stagnancy that started in late 2018. The decentralized currency rose in value and even cracked the US$13,000 mark on June 26 (closing price).

Bitcoin had been valued at approximately US$19,700 as recently as December 18, 2017. Late 2017 and early 2018 was the heyday of Bitcoin, with a single coin fetching prices above US$15,000. As the coin’s value shrank subsequently, many thought the hype around cryptocurrency had blown over. But Bitcoin rallied back to the five digits and was valued at approximately US$11,500 on Thursday morning (July 11).

Facebook’s announcement that it is starting its own cryptocurrency could have played a part in reviving interest in Bitcoin. Also, scheduled Bitcoin halving (the halving of the amount of Bitcoin that can be mined over a certain period of time) in 2020 spells out more value increases for the future.