Crypto Market Sees $1 Billion in Liquidations as Bitcoin Surges 10%

In the past 24 hours, the cryptocurrency market experienced significant liquidations, with over $1 billion in short positions being wiped out. This surge in liquidations was primarily driven by traders betting against Bitcoin, as the market saw a strong upward push. The liquidations were predominantly concentrated on Bitcoin futures, which accounted for $590 million of the total losses. Ethereum futures followed with $241 million in losses, and one of the largest single liquidations was an $88.5 million short position on Bitcoin (BTC-USDT) on the exchange HTX. Approximately 237,000 traders were liquidated during this period, with nearly 90% of them attempting to profit from a market drop that did not materialize.

Most of the liquidations occurred on the exchanges Bybit and HTX. Bybit alone saw $461 million in liquidations, with over 93% of those being short positions. Binance and HTX followed closely with $204 million and $193 million in liquidations, respectively. This wave of liquidations coincided with Bitcoin reaching a new all-time high above $118,000, driven by continued ETF inflows and a supportive macro backdrop. Over $15 billion has flowed into spot ETFs since their launch, with institutional buying showing no signs of slowing down. BlackRock’s IBIT ETF alone holds more than 700,000 BTC, and its rising revenue now rivals some of BlackRock’s biggest legacy offerings. Analysts suggest that this steady inflow is helping to stabilize price action and may continue to support Bitcoin through the summer.

In addition to ETF demand, the broader macro environment is also influencing the market. With Donald Trump pushing for aggressive interest rate cuts, potentially down to 1%, risk assets like Bitcoin are seeing renewed appeal. Traders are positioning for what they expect could be a friendlier environment for crypto under future policy shifts. Many are piling into call options at higher strike prices, including $130,000, indicating strong sentiment. Ethereum is also making headlines, surpassing Bitcoin in 24-hour futures volume in a rare flip. This suggests that trader focus may be broadening beyond BTC, with growing expectations around a spot ETH ETF approval. Ethereum may be next in line for a surge in institutional attention. Other altcoins, such as XRP, DOGE, and Solana, also posted significant gains, indicating a rotation of liquidity from Bitcoin into altcoins as market optimism spreads.