Cryptocurrency market crashes 20 per cent because a website ditches South Korean exchange data

Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies including Ethereum, Litecoin and Ripple’s prices fell on Monday after Coinmarketcap removed prices from South Korean exchanges. There was no prior warning given but it is no secret that the prices on South Korean exchanges are usually up to 30 percent higher than in other countries.

CoinMatketCap website suddenly excluded average price data from Bithumb, Coinone and Korbit, resulting in a quick drop in displayed prices

This morning we excluded some Korean exchanges in price calculations due to the extreme divergence in prices from the rest of the world and limited arbitrage opportunity. We are working on better tools to provide users with the averages that are most relevant to them.

— CoinMarketCap (@CoinMarketCap) January 8, 2018

The total market capitalisation of more than 1300 cryptocurrencies tracked by Coinmarketcap fell from around $US830 billion. Around late Monday, the market was sitting at around $US742 billion.

Ripple is among the hardest hit alongside Litecoin and Bitcoin cash. Bitcoin was trading at $14719.5  and is down more than 14 percent.

Via: News.com.au