Bitcoin's value rose $10 billion in just 12 hours after a dramatic sell-off

Bitcoin's value rose $10 billion in just 12 hours after a dramatic sell-off

Bitcoin rallied 11 percent in just over half a day to trade back above $6,000
It follows a sell-off on the weekend after developers called off plans to implement the SegWit2x upgrade to the bitcoin network
Rival cryptocurrencies like bitcoin cash saw a spike before tanking
Arjun Kharpal | @ArjunKharpal

Source: CoinDesk

Just last week, bitcoin hit a record high of $7,879.06 that was attributed to factors including CME Group announcing plans to offer bitcoin futures contracts, and some favorable regulation in countries like Japan, which has legalized bitcoin as a method of payment.

The bitcoin network was also due to undergo an upgrade called SegWit2x, which was initially planned for November 16. Its aim was to increase the transactions speed of the bitcoin network. But support for the upgrade has waned causing developers to call off its planned implementation.

This appeared to be the catalyst for the sell-off that began Friday.

Earlier this year, bitcoin's underlying blockchain technology split in a process known as a "hard fork." This happened twice, causing the creation of two new cryptocurrencies: bitcoin cash and bitcoin gold.

Bitcoin cash saw a huge spike as bitcoin sold off with many investors betting that this could be a viable alternative. Bitcoin cash, however, also lost about half its value, plunging from an all-time high of $2,477.65 on Sunday to $1,277.29 on Monday, according to Coinmarketcap.com.

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