ANKARA (Reuters) -Bitcoin tumbled more than 4% on Friday after Turkey's central bank banned the use of cryptocurrencies and crypto assets for purchases citing possible "irreparable" damage and transaction risks. The decision could stall Turkey's crypto market, which has gained momentum in recent months as investors joined the global rally in bitcoin, seeking to hedge against lira depreciation and inflation that topped 16% last month. Bitcoin was down 4.6% at $60,333 at 1117 GMT after the ban, which was criticised by Turkey's main opposition party. In a statement, the central bank said crypto assets were "neither subject to any regulation and supervision mechanisms nor a central regulatory authority", among other security risks. Last week, Turkish authorities demanded user information from crypto trading platforms.

Source: The Star April 15, 2021 23:16 UTC