Bitcoin plummets 17% for its biggest drop since March as its record-shattering rally stumbles

• Bitcoin plummeted as much as 17% on Monday, its biggest single-day decline since March.
• Bitcoin hit a record high of $34,792.47 on Sunday. The cryptocurrency had soared by 171% in the fourth quarter and by 305% in 2020.
• Some analysts said that after the stellar gains of the past month, some crypto coins such as Bitcoin and Ethereum were due for a downward correction.
• Ethereum soared by as much as 22% on Monday as Bitcoin faltered.

$4 plunged as much as 17% on Monday, its biggest single-day decline since March. It fell back below $30,000 at intraday lows after hitting a record high of $34,792.47 on Sunday.

The cryptocurrency is experiencing severe volatility on the heels of a 171% surge in the fourth quarter of 2020. $4 also notched astronomical gains in 2020; its 305% return made it one of the top-performing assets of the year.

Meanwhile, $4, the second-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization after Bitcoin, rose by as much as 22%, to $1,161.36, its highest level since 2018. Ethereum performed even more robustly than Bitcoin in 2020, rising more than 600%.

"The long-term outlook for both bitcoin and Ethereum remains skewed to the topside," said Daniel Moss, an analyst at DailyFX. "However, both cryptocurrencies could be at risk of a near-term pullback as their respective surges appear relatively overextended."

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Despite Bitcoin's Monday struggles, some experts expect a weak dollar, turbulence across traditional financial markets, and a greater shift in business and commerce online to help fuel further gains. A growing number of prominent investors and entrepreneurs have thrown their weight behind it, including Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, Paul Tudor Jones, and even Ray Dalio, who had been something of a crypto skeptic.

A key catalyst in 2020 was the online payments company PayPal allowing its users to buy and sell Bitcoin across its platform.

Smaller cryptocurrencies have benefited from this push and on Monday showed strong gains. Ripple's $4 was up as much as 10%, and $4 climbed by 12% at Monday highs.

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