Bitcoin extended its retreat from its recent record high amid a growing debate over whether the cryptocurrency bull run is a sign of speculation in global markets.
The most popular digital asset fell as much as 5.6% in Asian markets on Friday morning before paring some of its correction and eventually hovering at $67,300.
The token set a new all-time record of nearly $73,798 a day earlier.
Both this year’s rise in bitcoin and a count of the top 100 tokens, which include ether, BNB and Solana, fell to around 60%.
Bets on looser monetary policy from the Federal Reserve have supported rallies in global equities, bonds and crypto in recent months, but investors are reassessing those bets after signs of persistent inflationary pressures in the US.
In an interview with Bloomberg, Bank of America Corp executive Michael Hartnett said markets are displaying the characteristics of a bubble consisting of a record rise in the so-called Magnificent Seven technology sector stocks and historic highs in cryptocurrencies.
The tax office’s tool sweeping movements of bank accounts is ready
Comments of this kind are fueling a generalized debate on Wall Street about whether many markets are at risk of a sharp correction.
Coinglass data shows that $526 million worth of bullish positions in the cryptocurrency market were liquidated in the last 24 hours, a two-week high.
The funding rate of bitcoin futures, which are popular with speculators as they have no fixed expiration, collapsed, according to CryptoQuant data.