Bitcoin Trading Sure Is Volatile

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Monika Bauerlein,
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I was puttering around this morning looking at the latest price for bitcoin, and I happened to switch over from a chart of closing prices to a box-and-whisker plot. Here’s what it looks like:

Two things jump out at me. First, trading this week—and for the past month—has been wildly variable. Over the course of just a few days, bitcoin trades have ranged from $10,000 to $16,000. That’s a huge range, and suggests quite a bit of trading friction.

Second, for four straight weeks the low trade has been at precisely $10,000. What’s up with that? Does it have something to do with the start of futures trading on December 10?