Bitcoin will be hit by halving in value of its transactions

Has Bitcoin’s moment passed?

Has Bitcoin’s moment passed? One of the UK’s leading forecasting agencies today predicted the value of transactions using so-called cryptocurrencies could more than half this year.

Juniper Research believes cryptocurrency transactions will fall from more than $71bn (£47bn) in 2014 to just over $30 billion this year. In a report, Juniper argues the collapse of exchanges such as MtGox, thefts from exchanges such as Bitstamp and regulatory concern will lead to a cooling of activity involving cryptocurrency, of which Bitcoin is the most popular.

It follows a difficult year for Bitcoin, in which its value fell more than 40 per cent against the dollar. But Juniper’s Windsor Holden said the technology underpinning digital currency could thrive even if Bitcoin loses traction.

He said: “It is likely that we will see the technologies behind cryptocurrency deployed in areas such as real-time transactional settlement.”