Bitcoin drops more than 1.5% amid negative sentiment

Bitcoin shed more than 1.5 in spot trading today, to resume its losses which were suspended for 2 days, in recovery attempts from the 3-month low, amid negative sentiment in the crypto market, especially after the unexpected lukewarm reception to the Bakkt platform's launch.

At Bitstamp, Bitcoin fell by 1.8% or $156 to $8,170, from the opening of $8,326, with a high of $8,352.  

Yesterday Bitcoin rose by 0.25%, its second daily gain after it hit in the previous day its 3-month at $7,714.

The total market cap of cryptocurrencies fell by $3 billion today, to $218 billion, as Bitcoin and other major cryptocurrencies fell.

The Bakkt platform, which is operated by the ICE Group owner of the NYSE, has traded 623 Bitcoin (BTC) futures contracts in its first week, with the total trading volume rising to $5 million.

For comparison, during the first week of trading on the CME platform in 2017, 4,099 Bitcoin futures were traded with a volume of $165 million per day.

This lukewarm and unexpected launch for the long-awaited platform, reflects that institutional investors are holding back before building new positions, which is expected to continue for several days.