Investing.com - The price of the digital currency bitcoin fell below the $4,000 level on Wednesday as uncertainty over recent reports that China could move to ban cryptocurrency trading on domestic exchanges weighed.
On the U.S.-based Bitfinex exchange, Bitcoin hit a low of $3,904.1, the weakest level since September 5. It was trading at $3,965.00 by 04:48 AM ET (08:48 GMT), down 4.44%, having opened at $4,351.5.
At current prices, bitcoin has a total market capitalization of around $65 billion.
Bitcoin prices are down 16.5% so far this month, but have still quadrupled in value since the start of the year.
The cryptocurrency market has been hit by uncertainty since Chinese financial publication Caixin reported Friday that the country’s authorities are planning to shut down domestic cryptocurrency exchanges.
The reports came after China last week announced a ban on initial coin offerings, a kind of fundraising via virtual currencies in order to finance start-ups.
Regulators in China have been investigating the domestic market for bitcoin and other virtual currencies since January of this year.
Meanwhile, JPMorgan Chase Chief Executive Jamie Dimon said Wednesday that bitcoin "is a fraud" and will blow up. The comments came at a bank investor conference in New York.
"The currency isn't going to work. You can't have a business where people can invent a currency out of thin air and think that people who are buying it are really smart," he said.
Dimon said that if any JPMorgan traders were trading the cryptocurrency, "I would fire them in a second, for two reasons: It is against our rules and they are stupid, and both are dangerous."
Elsewhere, the price of bitcoin offshoot Bitcoin Cash was lower. It touched a low of $492.90 and was last at $509.46, having opened at $538.98.
Bitcoin cash has a total market cap of nearly $8 billion at current prices, making it the third most valuable cryptocurrency.
Elsewhere in cryptocurrency trading, Ethereum, the second biggest cryptocurrency by market cap after bitcoin, was down 6.43% to $275.00.
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