Bitcoin Cash drops 6%, falling down towards $300


Bitcoin Cash (BCH) is once again flirting with the $300 price point, after losing more than 5% in the last 24 hours. The cryptocurrency currently sits at $311.49, which in the medium term, is up 4% for the week, but longer-term, it's down more than 4% for the month.

Bitcoin Cash has previously struggled to maintain its value above $300, having hovered around this value since mid-July.

As it stands, BCH remains the fourth-largest cryptocurrency by market cap, behind Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH) and XRP. However, hot on its heels is Litecoin—typically referred to as the silver to Bitcoin's gold. Bitcoin Cash's market cap hovers around $5.7 billion, Litecoin's $4.8 billion. But Bitcoin Cash has an ace up its sleeve when it comes to the health of the network–which often correlates to price: Hashrate.

Litecoin's hashrate is in steady decline, whereas Bitcoin Cash's hashrate is on the rise. It is now being secured by over 2.6 EH/s of processing power, up from 2 EH/s earlier this year. Although this is still considerably lower than on Bitcoin, which recently surpassed 100 EH/s.

A rough ride

Bitcoin Cash has been faring worse than the coins above it in recent months. It has been gradually losing ground against Ethereum since April, with BCH falling more than 25% against ETH during this time. It is also down 50% against Bitcoin.

But it's not all bad news for Bitcoin Cash. It is still more profitable to mine over Bitcoin, making it a more sustainable choice for miners unable to compete in BTC's ongoing arms race.