It hasn't taken long for Ripple (XRP) to lose its position as the second largest cryptocurrency in the world.
The popular cryptocurrency dropped back into third position behind Ethereum after a sharp sell-off overnight.
According to Coin Market Cap, XRP is fetching $2.50 per coin, down 26% in the last 24 hours. This has left it with a market capitalisation of US$96.9 billion.
The bitcoin price hasn't fared that well either. It has fallen almost 8% over the last 24 hours to US$15,076 per coin, reducing its market capitalisation to US$253 billion.
Ethereum was the only major cryptocurrency making a positive gain over the period, climbing 1% to US$1,140. Its market capitalisation has risen to US$110 billion.
Why did this happen?
These declines appear to be nothing less than profit-taking by traders, especially in the case of XRP.
The cryptocurrency had been on an incredible run in 2018, rising over 51% since the start of the year. As we have seen time and time again in the industry, this almost always leads to a correction eventually.
Another reason being bandied around is the decision by Coin Market Cap to remove Korean exchanges from its price valuations. As these valuations tend to be higher than anywhere else, price charts immediately looked bearish on a technical basis after their removal, prompting crypto traders to hit the sell button.
Will it rebound?
Considering the technology is arguably the best out there and vastly superior to bitcoin in terms of transaction processing speeds, I expect that traders will soon be buying the dip and driving its price higher again.
However, I wouldn't necessarily rush in to buy any cryptocurrencies just yet. There are concerns floating around that China is on the verge of another crackdown, which could put a lot of pressure on prices in the coming weeks.
Because of this, investors might want to consider some of the quality tech shares listed on the local share market such as Altium Limited (ASX: ALU) and Appen Ltd (ASX: APX) instead.
