Bitcoin Price Gives up All of Weekend Gains in Less than 12 Hours

It took less than twelve hours for Bitcoin 's (BTC/USD) price to tank by 17% to $220 on BTC-e, giving up all of its hard-earned weekend gains.

The near-vertical drop began immediately after BTC re-tested its 3-week high of $265 but failed to advance further. With buyers depleted from the market, BTC quickly reversed course.

The earlier stages of the fall, through steep, took place on volumes near 1,000 BTC/hour. After a brief retracement near $240, volumes spiked to over 4,000 BTC/hour and sellers dragged BTC's price lower by nearly 10%.

The relative ease with which BTC came off its twin peaks is consistent with a rise built on shaky foundations. Gone is its return above the 50-day moving average (MA). While its latest venture above this mark lasted slightly longer than three weeks ago, the overall pattern is similar to that of the post-Coinbase hype. BTC now finds itself back in the low $200s, territory which it has defended fairly well but which is uncomfortably close to 15-month lows.

The price has since mounted a small recovery, currently trading at $236.

Litecoin (LTC/USD) is back to near $1.80, slightly above its trading range in the $1.70s during the past two weeks.

Prices on BTC-e are $3.50 (1.5%) lower than on its peers, an average offset.