Investing.com - The price of the digital currency bitcoin edged lower on Tuesday after significant fluctuations in recent sessions in the wake of a cancelled software upgrade, while bitcoin offshoot Bitcoin Cash was also lower.
On the U.S.-based Bitfinex exchange, Bitcoin was at $6,436.4 by 07.52 AM ET (12:52 PM GMT).
Bitcoin fell as much as 29% from its November 8 record high just shy of $7,900 following the cancellation of a planned software update, before recouping some of its losses on Monday.
The planned upgrade, known as "SegWit2x", would have roughly doubled the network’s processing capacity, making fees for bitcoin transactions much cheaper.
As bitcoin tumbled traders shifted to an alternative version of the digital currency, Bitcoin Cash, which was generated from another software split on August 1, sending it surging to a record high of $2,790.00 on Sunday.
Bitcoin Cash was last at $1,293.10, down 4.0% for the day.
At current prices Bitcoin Cash has a total market capitalization of around $22 billion, making it the third most valuable cryptocurrency.
Bitcoin, which is known for sharp swings, has tended to rebound quickly from pullbacks. It has risen more than 500% so far this year and at current prices has a total market cap of around $108 billion.
The sharp rise has given rise to fears of an asset bubble. Earlier this month, Credit Suisse Chief Executive Tidjane Thiam warned that Bitcoin is the “very definition of a bubble.”
But in a sign that the financial industry is starting to warm up to bitcoin, the world's largest derivative exchange operator CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) this month announced plans to launch bitcoin futures later this year.
The futures will allow investors to short bitcoin, making two-way bets possible, a development that CME expects will attract major institutional investors, not just speculators.
Elsewhere in cryptocurrency trading, Ethereum, the second most valuable cryptocurrency by market cap after bitcoin, was up 2.87% at $322.21.