Panic selling hits virtual asset market

The plummeting price of Bitcoin is displayed on a screen at Upbit's lounge in Seoul, Monday. Yonhap

The virtual asset market in Korea saw a significant fall along with the stock market on Monday, with Bitcoin even plummeting to as low as the $50,000 level during trading. This decline wiped out the gains made over the past five months.

As of 3:30 p.m., Monday, Bitcoin traded at $50,484, according to the crypto price tracker CoinMarketCap. This is a 16.85 percent decrease compared to the previous day. It brought the price back to levels last seen at the end of February.

The weakness is attributed to the growing concerns surrounding a possible economic downturn, as evidenced by the U.S. unemployment rate in July reaching its highest level in nearly three years. This has led investors to turn away from risky assets.

Altcoins also couldn't avoid a market crash. As of 3:30 p.m., Monday, Ethereum plummeted by 23 percent from the previous day to $2,217, marking its lowest level in six months since early February. Ripple declined by 19.5 percent, and Solana fell by 20 percent during the same period.

Stocks related to cryptocurrency exchange operators also plunged. Woori Technology Investment, for instance, fell 16.96 percent to close at 6,510 won on Monday.