Bitcoin prices slumped some 26 percent on Tuesday following media reports that third-party payment companies have been banned from doing business with the virtual currency exchanges.

By 3 pm Tuesday, the price of bitcoins had dropped to 3,800 yuan, which was 46 percent lower than its all-time high, posted Dec 1.

The National Business Daily reported Tuesday that leaders from third-party payment companies confirmed that the central bank, the People's Bank of China, had ordered the companies not to do business with bitcoin exchanges in China, meaning that holders of the virtual currency would lack a channel to exchange their bitcoins for such currencies as the Chinese yuan or US dollar.