Bitcoin Briefly Falls Below $60,000; U.S. Policy Seen as Key Rebound Driver

Bitcoin recently fell below $60,000, at one point touching a 52-week low. The slide has extended a downtrend that began after its peak in October last year, with liquidations of leveraged positions amplifying the losses.

CoinMarketCap data showed Bitcoin trading at about $63,400 as of 7 a.m. on June 13. It fell to the $59,000 range on June 6. Since then, it has moved between $59,000 and $64,000. That leaves it down more than 50% from its record high of $126,198 on Oct. 7 last year.

The launch of derivatives tied to traditional assets by global exchanges has also weighed on Bitcoin liquidity by spreading demand for leverage across other products.

Binance this month listed perpetual futures contracts with up to 20 times leverage tied to underlying assets including Samsung Electronics, SK Hynix and Hyundai Motor. Market sentiment was also pressured by Strategy's decision to sell Bitcoin and SpaceX's listing, the report said.

The next direction for Bitcoin may depend on U.S. legislative and policy developments. One key focus is whether the Digital Asset Market Clarity Act, known as the Clarity Act, passes the Senate.

Yonhap News reported that Kim Min-seung, head of research at Korbit, cited U.S. discussions of a strategic Bitcoin reserve and the recently proposed Modernizing America's Reserve Assets Act, or ARMA, as the biggest variables for the crypto market going forward.

"If Bitcoin becomes a U.S. strategic asset, not only the U.S. government but also most financial institutions could allocate assets to Bitcoin, which could have a bigger impact than approval of a spot ETF," Kim said.

Shin Yong-hyun, Hankyung.com reporter yonghyun@hankyung.com