What could this be a sign of… Bitcoin, first October monthly 'decline' in 7 years

The upward march of Bitcoin that had continued every October has stopped for the first time in seven years.

According to U.S. cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase on the 31st (local time), as of 5 p.m. Eastern Time (2 p.m. Pacific Time) that day, one bitcoin was trading at $109,420, down nearly 7% from the beginning of the month.

Because Bitcoin had shown strong gains every October, investors called October 'Uptober', but this year the phenomenon did not continue for the first time since 2018.

Bitcoin showed strong upward momentum earlier this month, repeatedly hitting record highs.

It was interpreted that investors who expected the dollar to weaken amid a U.S. government shutdown considered Bitcoin, called 'digital gold' along with gold and silver, as one of the 'safe-haven' assets.

However, after reaching an all-time high of $126,200 on the 6th, Bitcoin's value began to retreat, and on the 10th it plunged more than 14% from the day's high, dropping to around $104,000.

Adam McCarthy, senior researcher at digital market data provider Kaiko, told Reuters, "Cryptocurrencies started October at record highs along with gold and stocks, but when uncertainty hit for the first time this year many investors left Bitcoin."

He pointed out, "The plunge on the 10th showed that the range of this asset class is very narrow," adding, "(Among cryptocurrencies, the only ones worth investing in) are Bitcoin and Ethereum, but even these are assets that can fall 10% in 15∼20 minutes."

However, despite the October decline, Bitcoin's year-to-date value is still up more than 16%.

Kang Hong-min, reporter khm@hankyung.com