Bitcoin slipped to just above $100,000 late Monday, before a small recovery to $101,000, as a wave of forced liquidations and renewed macro turmoil wiped out billions in speculative positions across crypto markets.
More than $2 billion in futures contracts were liquidated in the last 24 hours, per CoinGlass, with long traders accounting for nearly 80% of the $1.6 billion in losses.
Liquidations occur when traders using borrowed funds are forced to close their positions because their margin falls below the required level. On crypto futures exchanges, this process is automatic, as when prices move strongly towards a leveraged trade, the platform sells the position to the open market to cover losses.
Large clusters of long liquidations can signal capitulation and potential near-term bottoms, while heavy short wipeouts can precede local tops when momentum flips.
Traders can also keep track of where liquidation levels are concentrated, helping to identify zones of forced activity that can act as short-term support or resistance.
The wipeout marks one of the biggest deleveraging events since September, indicating how fragile positioning has become after weeks of price action.
Bitcoin fell 5.5% in the past 24 hours and is down more than 10% for the week. Ether fell 10% to $3,275, while Solana’s SOL and BNB lost 8% and 7%, respectively. XRP, Dogecoin and Cardano also fell between 5% and 6%.
The total crypto market capitalization fell back towards $3.5 trillion, the lowest level in over a month.
“Bitcoin traded around $100,000 today as risk-off sentiment gripped financial markets, affecting a wide range of digital assets, stocks and commodities,” Gerry O’Shea, head of global market insights at Hashdex, said in an email to CoinDesk.
“Recent speculation that the FOMC may pass another rate cut this year, as well as concerns over tariffs, credit market conditions and equity valuations, helped drive markets lower. Bitcoin’s recent price action has also been affected by selling by long-term holders – an expected phenomenon as the asset matures,” O’Shea added.
On exchanges, Bybit accounted for $628 million in liquidations, followed by Hyperliquid at $533 million and Binance at $421 million. The single largest close was an $11 million BTC-USDT long on HTX.
Despite the volatility, analysts said the broader outlook remains constructive.
“While $100,000 may be a psychologically important support level, we do not see today’s price action as a sign of a weakening of the long-term investment case for Bitcoin,” O’Shea said.
With the Federal Reserve pausing further cuts and global risk appetite still fragile, traders say the next few sessions will test whether Bitcoin’s rejection can turn into a sustained recovery – or whether another wave of forced selling lies ahead.
