Crypto stocks: Pummeled as China's warning prompts Bitcoin slump

Sos

19/05/2021 10:08

** Shares of cryptocurrency and blockchain-related firms
fall premarket as Bitcoin  BTC=BTSP  drops 5.1% to $40,691.8 
    ** Bitcoin slid below the $40,000 mark to hit a 3-1/2-month
low, before recouping some losses, after China imposed fresh
curbs on transactions involving cryptocurrencies  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL2N2N60Q4
    ** China, a major hub for crypto mining, bans financial
institutions, payment firms from providing services related to
crypto transactions; also warns investors against speculative
trading    
    ** Bitcoin bank Silvergate Capital Corp  SI.N  down 4.2%
before the bell; cryptocurrency miners Riot Blockchain  RIOT.O 
and Marathon Digital Holdings  MARA.O  7.8% and 7.4% lower,
respectively      
    ** China-based Future Fintech Group Inc  FTFT.O  slips 1.4% 
    ** Shares of Overstock.com  OSTK.O , an online retailer and
blockchain tech investor, down 1.3%; shares of MicroStrategy Inc
 MSTR.O , a BTC buyer and business intelligence software firm,
4.6% lower
    ** China-focused SOS  SOS.N  drops 5%, while U.S.-listed
shares of crypto exchange Coinbase Global decline 3.7% before
the bell
    ** In Frankfurt, Coinbase's German listing  1QZ.F  slides
more than 6.3%, hitting a record low
    ** YTD, BTC has risen ~40%, broadly lifting the market
values of crypto-related stocks with it

 (Reporting by Aaron Saldanha)
 ((Aaron.Saldanha@thomsonreuters.com; +91 9810644993; Reuters
Messaging: Aaron.Saldanha@thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))