Bitcoin slumps to 6-month low

The price of Bitcoin tumbled below $30,000 for the first time in more than six months on Tuesday — erasing its 2021 gains.

The volatile cryptocurrency plunged more than 13 percent early Tuesday to about $29,200 per coin, according to data from Coinbase. That was its lowest level since December of last year and more than 55 percent off its all-time high of more than $64,000 in mid-April.

By early evening, Bitcoin had recovered to change hands at the $32,600 level — but it was still down about 25 percent from a week ago.

Other major cryptocurrencies saw even bigger losses Tuesday, with Ether, Binance coin, Cardano and XRP all down by double digits.

The morning’s losses extend a decline for Bitcoin and the broader crypto market that began Monday after China intensified its crackdown on the e-coin, including targeting mining and banking transactions with cryptocurrencies.

The Chinese government-backed tabloid Global Times reported that many Bitcoin mines in Sichuan Province and elsewhere were closed Sunday and would remain closed “at least for the short term.”

The newspaper estimated that more than 90 percent of China’s Bitcoin mining capacity is currently shut down.

Mining is the energy-intensive process that harnesses computers to produce new bitcoins while also processing transactions made with the existing supply.

Later Monday, the People’s Bank of China said it summoned major lenders including Alipay, the payment service run by Alibaba affiliate Ant Group, and some of the country’s biggest banks.

The central bank said it directed them not to provide any services related to cryptocurrency activities.

The losses since those headlines have now knocked almost $400 billion off the overall crypto market.

Still, the price of Bitcoin is still up almost 200 percent from 12 months ago, according to Coinbase.