Bitcoin fell by as much as 14 per cent to $51,541 on Sunday amid unconfirmed Twitter speculation that the US Treasury may crack down on money laundering that’s carried out through cryptocurrency.
The selloff meant the cryptocurrency reversed most of the big gains it made over the past week.
The latest dip meant it was trading at $53,991, which is a whopping $12,000 below record highs of above $64,800 set on Wednesday.
Smaller rival Ether, the coin linked to the ethereum blockchain network, dropped 10 per cent to $2,101.
Bitcoin fell by as much as 14 per cent to $51,541 on Sunday morning, reversing most of the gains of a record week that saw it reach highs of above $64,800 on Wednesday