Bitcoin price slid downward to $35,000 on Thursday, all the way from $43,110 within one week. At the same time, other leading cryptocurrencies have taken a plunge as multiple explosions have occurred in the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, Kharkiv, and Lviv, according to many news agencies.
Kyiv and Kharkiv cities are homes to several millions of Ukrainians and foreign diplomats, and expatriates.
Reuters has reported that during the early hours of Thursday, the President of Russia, Vladimir Putin ordered a military raid in the Donbas region of Eastern Ukraine where they have been ordering Ukraine’s military to drop their weapons and head back home.
Vladimir Putin said in a broadcast that he implores all Ukrainian military personnel to lay down their arms and return home. He said further that every Ukrainian serviceman who complies with this requirement would be given a pass to exit the battle area and go back to their families.
After the Putin broadcast, a Reuters reporter stationed in Kyiv reported hearing what seemed like heavy artillery bombardment in the distance from where he was. The Guardian also reported that Russia’s missiles hit Kyiv and Kharkiv. There are corroborating reports from other media outlets claiming that up to twenty-four cruise missiles have been shot into both cities.
Attacks on Computer Networks in Ukraine Drags Bitcoin Price Down
In the meantime, several networks in Ukraine’s cyberspace have been hit by a new wave of viruses that are able to erase data from any hacked devices, as reported by two top cyber security companies that have a strong operating presence in Eastern Europe.
ESET LLC and Symantec BV equally reported spotting a so-called wiper virus in wide attacks against Ukraine’s cyber networks, while ESET claimed further that the tool facilitating the hacking was already installed on hundreds of computers in Ukraine.
The US-based Technical Director of the Threat Intelligence Team at Symantec, Vikram Thakur, said that Symantec has been able to identify some groups targeted by the wiper virus. Symantec said that the systems’ virus targeting government contractors and financial institutions has already been found in Lithuania and Latvia.
Bitcoin’s Damage
Bitcoin’s safe-haven status is almost wiped out as a result of the ongoing conflict and the likelihood of it spreading yond just Russia and Ukraine. The worsening Russia-US diplomatic relationship has put the global financial market in a risk-aversion position, according to Yuya Hasegawa, a cryptocurrency analyst at Japan’s Bitbank.
Other cryptocurrencies in the market have suffered the effect of the expected conflict. Ethereum dipped 1.5%, XRP dipped 7%, and Cardano also suffered a 4.5% drop.
Wall Street stocks took a plunge on Wednesday while investors scampered for safety for their funds from the Ukraine Crisis.
The position of Bitcoin as a digital gold has been attacked and weakened since more traditional investors have begun trading it and the digital asset’s price is fast becoming closely attached to conservative assets like stocks.
