Bitcoin tumbles after Elon Musk tweets breakup meme

The price of bitcoin sank on Friday after Elon Musk appeared to lament the end of his relationship with the cryptocurrency.

The Tesla CEO tweeted a meme about a couple breaking up along with the bitcoin hashtag and a broken heart emoji. The post included lyrics from a song by rock band Linkin Park titled “In the end.”

Bitcoin fell by over 6% to hit $35,814 at around 8 am ET, according to CoinDesk. It was last trading at $36,410, having dropped about 5% over the past 24 hours. Other digital currencies lost ground, with ethereum 5.6% weaker in mid-morning US trade at $2,637 and dogecoin tumbling 10% to around 36 cents.

Musk recently told customers that the electric car giant would no longer accept bitcoin as payment for its vehicles because of concerns about the environmental impact of bitcoin mining, which is extremely energy intensive.

While he later appeared to soften his stance after speaking with bitcoin miners in North America, Musk’s most recent tweet suggests he won’t be back on the bandwagon anytime soon.

Musk frequently triggers large moves in cryptocurrency prices, often via obscure remarks on social media. In December, Musk sent the price of dogecoin up nearly 20% by simply tweeting, “One word: Doge.” He later said that his tweets about the crypto were meant as jokes.

Bitcoin, which accounts for more than 40% of the global crypto market, is coming off a rough month. Prices plunged about 36% in May, their worst monthly performance since September 2011.

A steady torrent of bad news, including steps by China to crack down on the digital coin, has sent bitcoin spiraling downward since it hit an all-time high above $64,000 in April.

— Paul R. La Monica contributed reporting.