What you are about to read is an opinion.  Not an advice of any kind.

Let's be clear here - this sell off is not entirely driven by the Coronavirus scare.  It was triggered by the Plus Token scammers trying to dump the 'stolen' bitcoin into the market.  Timing couldn't have been shitttier than this.  With coronavirus fear creating China uncertainty & impacting South Korea, two big players in the crypto space, was already playing against the crypto market sentiment - this dump has only added insult to the injury. 

Plus Token dump of their bitcoin loot has intensified the assault on the crypto space.   All in all over $2+ Billion (yes, with a B) was amassed by the Plus Token scammers and they have been dumping it on the market ever since.

Chainalysis reports "180,000 BTC, 6,400,000 ETH, 111,000 USDT, and 53 OMG (OmiseGo) that went from scam victims to PlusToken wallets, equating to roughly $2 billion. Either figure would make PlusToken one of the largest Ponzi schemes ever."

With such a large stash of bitcoin to be disposed, these thieves are ready to get rid of their crypto for any price.

Most people may not be aware of this sell pressure and are using this dump in Bitcoin prices to come after the Bitcoin 'safe-haven' rhetoric. 

Dump or not, Bitcoin space never shuts down

Traditional stock markets have protocols to shut down trading if the trade falls below a certain level in a single day.  This shut-down could be anywhere from 15 minutes to few months.  

Crypto space has no central authority implementing such measures to save the market from irrational behavior during a panic situation.  This is the true meaning of 'decentralization' - no matter the outcome - the market goes on because its a truly open/free market.

We do not know if Exchanges will implement protocols similar to traditional markets to avoid this kind of dump.  When companies like Fidelity offer trading options - we anticipate such measures to become common in crypto space as well.

For now, people who were vigilant during the dump at $4000 mark have already made close to 30% profits in matter of a day or two.

When will this dump stop?

This dump is expected to continue until the Plus Token scammers exhaust their Bitcoin stash.   Even when they are done - market may take a longer time  to recover from this free fall given the coronavirus impact on most active crypto markets.

People want to stash fiat to buy groceries and not bitcoin during the times of crisis.  And that is understandable.

While we called for crypto folks to put in a small amount into crypto space to keep it afloat, that should only be done after they have provided for the reserves in terms of meeting the coronavirus crisis at hand.

Bitcoin and crypto will not go anywhere (except few projects that will be wiped out similar to how some companies will be wiped out in traditional market) - prioritize the well-being of your loved ones.

We hope this crisis ends soon and we all get to watch the halving marathon in peace!