Investing.com - Bitcoin was flat on Thursday as the bear market returned to cryptocurrencies.
Bitcoin was trading at $7,566.00, inching up 0.01% on the Bitfinex exchange, as of 8:33 AM ET (12:33 GMT), far from its high of $8,281.80 last week.
Cryptocurrencies overall were lower. The coin market cap of total market capitalization was at $269 billion at the time of writing, compared to $272 billion on Wednesday.
Ethereum, the second-biggest alternative currency by market cap, fell 2.34% to $414.17 on the Bitfinex exchange. Ripple, the third-largest virtual currency, decreased 2.85% to $0.43470, while Litecoin was at $76.476, down 2.02%.
Meanwhile, South Korean digital asset exchange Bithumb said it will stop accepting new accounts due to problems with local banks.
One of South Korea’s largest exchanges, the company said it was unable to renew contracts with a bank amid allegations of tax evasion and questionable business practices.
Cryptocurrency exchanges in South Korea are required to partner with banks to open new accounts, an attempt to preventing money laundering. Bithumb customers who already have an account can still use them to deposit and withdraw tokens.
The bank has given the exchange a one-month grace period, but existing virtual accounts could close if the two companies do not renew their contract.
In other news, the number of crypto mining companies in Russia has increased by 15% in the first half of 2018. There are now 75,000 companies that focus on mining virtual coins, accounting for about 6% of the world’s mining market, the Russian Association of Cryptocurrencies and Blockchain reported.