Bitcoin Bug Bites Japan and South Korea as China Clamps Down - The New York Times

From a timely bitcoin reality check

"The price of Bitcoin recently stood around $4,300, down 12 percent from the high earlier last month. But that was up about 50 percent from the low last month and still up more than 340 percent since the beginning of the year.

Bitcoin has been used — most controversially — to buy drugs online and make virtual ransom payments to hackers. More recently, it has provided a way for investors to put money into new starts-ups through initial coin offerings.

Beyond all that, though, it is a speculative asset. People buy and sell it because it is scarce — only 21 million Bitcoins will ever be created — and investors hope it will gain real-world applications in the future."

Bitcoin Bug Bites Japan and South Korea as China Clamps Down - The New York Times