Cryptocurrency prices continue to fall as high volatility prevailed in the virtual coin market over the past 24 hours.

Crypto prices started falling after Monday’s trading session due to heavy profit-booking, and have remained weak since then. Experts believe volatility in crypto trade is also a result of monthly options expiry.

Bitcoin (BTC), the world’s most popular cryptocurrency, is trading slightly below $47,000, down 2.95 per cent at 12:07 pm. The virtual coin’s market capitalisation has fallen sharply to $882 billion.

It may be noted that Bitcoin had touched a high of $50,000 on Monday and its market capitalisation has inched closer to $950 billion.

Crypto highlights | Check yesterday’s prices

Ether’s (ETH) value has also eroded sharply over the past 24 hours. It was trading at $3,109, down over 3 per cent compared to its value 24 hours ago. Ether’s market capitalisation has fallen to $363 billion.

All other altcoins also lost ground, trading 3-8 per cent lower due to the selloff observed over the past 24 hours.

Commenting on the cryptocurrency market, Edul Patel, CEO and Co-founder of Mudrex, a global algorithm based crypto trading platform, said, “The crypto markets were highly volatile over the past 24 hours. Such volatility is often encountered before the monthly options expiry.”

“The spot trading volume for Bitcoin was low, indicating that the markets are not directional at the moment. Despite a minor selloff in Ether, the largest Altcoin still appears to have a strong support,” he added.

“Most other Altcoins would be replicating the movement in BTC and ETH.”

Here are the latest prices and trends of popular cryptocurrencies:

DISCLAIMER: The cryptocurrency prices have been updated as of 12:20 pm and will change as the day progresses. The list is intended to give a rough idea about popular cryptocurrency trends and be updated daily.