XMR Plunges by 12% over Hack-Related Sell Pressures
Monero (XMRUSD) plunged by approximately 12% in the last 24 hours in the cryptocurrency market, underperforming the broader crypto market’s 0.03% dip.
The fast and furious price depreciation follows a 95% year-to-date upswing that lifted its market price to $799, driven by privacy demand amid tightening EU/Dubai regulations.
Price has fallen to $628 in 24 hours, stemming from a triple threat: natural profit-taking after a vertical rally, hack-related sell pressure, and regulatory anxiety unique to privacy coins.
XMRUSD rode on a privacy-fuelled rally but faces turbulence from whale movements and regulatory shadows. While technical support near $600 could stabilise prices short-term, the hack overhang and regulatory uncertainty add downside risk.
The sharp price depreciation followed profit-taking after a parabolic rally, selling pressure from a $282 million hack’s laundering, and regulatory concerns for privacy coins.
Monero’s 95% surge in January triggered a retail trading alert that previously preceded 37-52% drops in Zcash and Dash. This signal often marks emotional buying and thinning liquidity.
The rapid ascent invited profit-taking, especially as Relative Strength Indicator (RSI) signal approached overbought levels. Historically, such signals in privacy coins lead to sharp corrections when late buyers exit.
A social engineering attack drained $282 million in BTC/LTC from a hardware wallet. Attackers used THORChain to bridge funds across chains and swapped about $78 million into Monero via instant exchanges, exploiting its privacy features.
This caused XMR’s price to spike 60% from $450 to $800 within days. The laundering artificially inflated Monero’s price during the hack, and the subsequent sell-off contributed to the 24h drop
Crypto analysts said the incident is bearish for XMR’s regulatory outlook, as it highlights its use in laundering, but bullish for short-term demand from illicit flows.
Post-spike, XMR corrected to $628 as attackers sold portions.
Looking ahead, traders cited regulatory risks as a headwind, with exchanges like Kraken delisting XMR in some regions. Social media highlighted parallels to Zcash’s compliance-driven crash.
Privacy coins face unique scrutiny, and fear of exchange bans can spur preemptive selling. While derivatives innovation and scarcity from exchange exits support price, the $282 million heist and retail signal warn of fragility. Naira Sees Market-Wide Rally as FX Users Price in Projections
