Bitcoin (BTC) is no stranger to volatility.
During its short lifespan, the price of BTC has seen immense growth, going from virtually 0 to over $68,000 at its most recent peak.
However, its price has not gone up in a straight line, but instead seen numerous peaks and troughs spread out over the past few years.
This has made Bitcoin a highly attractive asset for some, and completely undesirable for others.
The troughs, or price corrections as they are also known, can be painful and costly experiences if you are caught on the wrong side of the trade.
Since 2012, there have been several instances of 30% or more price drops in BTC, in many cases leading to new all-time highs shortly after.
In this guide, we look at the top 5 biggest Bitcoin crashes to date along with the reasons behind the decline.
5. 14 April 2021 - 22 June 2021 — 55.95%
Bitcoin high price: $64,895.22
Bitcoin low price: $28,600
Number of days in correction: 69
Number of days until new high: 189
Reason: Coinbase gets listed on the stock market, China announces a cryptocurrency ban.
4. 26 June 2019 - 13 March 2020 — 72.26%
Bitcoin high price: $13,880
Bitcoin low price: $3,850
Number of days in correction: 261
Number of days until new high: 493
Reason: Uncertainty around Tether stablecoin reserves and COVID-19 rocks the global markets including crypto.
3. 10-12 April 2013 — 82.65%
Bitcoin high price: $259.34
Bitcoin low price: $45
Number of days in correction: 2
Number of days until new high: 210
Reason: Cryptocurrency exchanges came under distributed denial of service attacks.
2. 17 December 2017 - 15 December 2018 — 84.12%
Bitcoin high price: $19,666
Bitcoin low price: $3,122.28
Number of days in correction: 363
Number of days until new high: 1079
Reason: CME Group launches Bitcoin futures and Coincheck, Japan’s largest over-the-counter cryptocurrency exchange gets hacked just a few days later.
1. 30 November 2013 - 14 January 2015 — 86.9%
Bitcoin high price: $1,163
Bitcoin low price: $152.40
Number of days in correction: 410
Number of days until new high: 1181
Reason: China announces a ban on cryptocurrencies.
Sources: TradingView
