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Bitcoin, dogecoin tumble as young Canadians jump into cryptocurrencies

LA LIBERTAD, EL SALVADOR - JUNE 16: Salvadorans perform a bitcoin transaction on June 16, 2021 in Chiltuipan, El Salvador. Playa El Zonte has been named as the Bitcoins capital, around 500 families promote the use of the cryptocurrency to help the economy of a place with poverty issues. Salvadorans from the El Zonte community have been using Bitcoin for two years in their businesses, purchases, and basic basket payments. El Salvador became the first country in the world in recognizing bitcoin as legal tender. (Photo by Alex Pena/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
Salvadorans from the El Zonte community have been using Bitcoin for two years in their businesses, purchases, and basic basket payments. El Salvador became the first country in the world in recognizing bitcoin as legal tender. (Photo by Alex Pena/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images) (Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

Notoriously volatile cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, dogecoin, and others are crashing again today amid evidence that suggests Canadians have been buying in.

Bitcoin fell below US$30,000 for the first time in five months amid fears of a crackdown in China and has been under pressure since Elon Musk changed his mind about Tesla accepting it as payment. It also hit an ominous bearish technical indicator called the "death cross", which is when the 50-day moving average crosses below the 200-day moving average.

Bitcoin and Dogecoin prices over the last 6 months (Yahoo Finance)
Bitcoin and Dogecoin prices over the last 6 months (Yahoo Finance)

Another past Musk favourite, dogecoin, is down nearly 60 per cent since he joked about it and called it a hustle on Saturday Night Live in May.

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According to a new report from Finder, quite a few Canadians could be on the hook for those losses, depending on when they got in. It found 14 per cent of Canadians surveyed through Google own some form of cryptocurrency.

It found the most widely held cryptocurrencies are bitcoin (6 per cent), followed by ethereum (3 per cent), bitcoin cash (2 per cent), and ripple (2 per cent).

More men surveyed (16 per cent) say they own cryptocurrency compared to women (11 per cent). Ownership was the highest among young people aged 18-24, at 18 per cent, which is the highest of any country included for this age group.

But it's way behind the leaders overall, which are Vietnam (41 per cent), Hong Kong (26 per cent) and Italy (21 per cent).

Looking for cryptocurrency bargain

In another sign of widespread global interest in cryptocurrencies, a new estimate from Finbold predicts popular trading platform Coinbase's verified users are projected to grow by 30 per cent in 2021 to hit over 70 million.

Finbold says it expects falling crypto prices to attract bargain-hunting investors.

"Although bitcoin's value has plunged with asset trading sideways, the cryptocurrency's sentiments also put focus on exchanges like Coinbase. Most crypto opinion leaders agree that the correction of bitcoin is forming ground for the asset's resurgence towards the end of 2021," it said in a report.

"Historically, such a resurgence has always resulted in new investors from the retail side as the fear of missing out sets in. Thus, the situation places exchanges like Coinbase to reap."

Coinbase opened in 2012 and hit the million verified user mark in 2014.

Jessy Bains is a senior reporter at Yahoo Finance Canada. Follow him on Twitter @jessysbains.

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