TLDR
Around $1.8 billion of leveraged crypto positions were wiped out in a sharp market drop, mainly bullish bets on Bitcoin and large altcoins.
- Roughly $1.71.8 billion in leveraged positions were liquidated in 24 hours, with more than 8590% coming from long bets on BTC, ETH, SOL and other majors.
- The wipeout followed an over-leveraged market, heavy ETF outflows and a rare Bitcoin sale by corporate holder Strategy, which together flipped sentiment into extreme fear.
- Leverage in perpetuals is still high, so the risk of further liquidation cascades remains if key Bitcoin support levels and ETF flows do not stabilize.
Deep Dive
1. Scale Of The Liquidation Wave
Multiple analytics and news sources report that around $1.8 billion in leveraged crypto positions were closed in about 24 hours as Bitcoin dropped from above $70,000 to the mid $60,000s, the largest wipeout since early February. CoinDesk notes about $1.84 billion of liquidations, with roughly $1.66 billion in longs and $180 million in shorts, led by Bitcoin, Ether and Solana longs and a single $59.7 million BTC-USDT long closed on HTX.
Other outlets put the total near $1.8 billion, with Bitcoin longs losing around $774880 million and Ether longs roughly $440480 million, while Solana and meme names like Dogecoin contributed tens of millions more to the total. One Cointelegraph summary cites more than $1.58 billion in long liquidations out of about $1.8 billion overall as BTC slid to roughly $65,000.
CMCs own derivatives dashboard shows Bitcoin-related liquidations over the last 24 hours in the hundreds of millions of dollars, and around $1.81 billion over the past week, matching this scale of forced deleveraging.
2. Why These Leveraged Bets Blew Up
This did not come out of nowhere. In the days before the drop, leverage and bullish positioning had been building. One analysis points out that Bitcoins futures and perpetual leverage ratios and funding rates hit their highest levels since late 2025, indicating traders were heavily long and paying up to stay leveraged.
At the same time, spot demand weakened. Spot Bitcoin ETFs have seen an extended streak of net outflows, with estimates of roughly $2.83.5 billion withdrawn over recent sessions, removing a major source of buy pressure. Bitcoin.com emphasizes that these ETF outflows coincided with the slide below 66,000 dollars and were a key driver of the selloff.
A symbolic shock came from Strategy, the large corporate Bitcoin holder associated with Michael Saylor, which disclosed its first BTC sale in years. Although only 32 BTC, several reports describe it as a blow to the never sell narrative, unsettling already leveraged traders.
With leverage heavy, ETF demand weakening and sentiment rattled by geopolitical tensions and the Strategy sale, an initial price drop through levels like 70,000 and 66,000 dollars triggered margin calls. Exchanges auto-sold collateral to cover losses, causing a classic liquidation cascade and amplifying the move.
3. What It Means And What To Watch Next
Despite the wipeout, derivatives exposure remains large. CoinsKid data shows total perpetual open interest around 468 billion dollars, up about 6 percent over 24 hours, while the total crypto market cap is about 2.3 trillion dollars, down roughly 1 percent day on day. That suggests leverage has been shaken but not fully flushed, with some traders likely re-entering, often on the short side.
Sentiment is firmly negative. Several reports cite the Crypto Fear and Greed Index in Extreme Fear, around low-teens readings, after being near neutral a month ago. Analysts repeatedly highlight the 60,00065,000 dollar area as a critical Bitcoin support zone; a clean break lower could trigger another round of forced selling, while holding that band could allow a choppy reset period.
Key things to monitor now are:
- Daily flows into or out of spot Bitcoin and Ether ETFs.
- Funding rates and open interest on major futures and perpetual venues.
- The size and direction of any new liquidation clusters near obvious technical levels.
The immediate leverage washout has already happened, but with derivatives exposure still elevated and ETF flows weak, the market could remain jumpy until either leverage is reduced further or spot demand clearly returns.
Conclusion
About $1.8 billion in leveraged crypto bets, mostly longs, were wiped out as a crowded, over-leveraged market met weakening ETF demand and a narrative shock from Strategys first Bitcoin sale. The cascade was large enough to reset sentiment into fear but not enough to fully clear leverage, which keeps the door open to further volatility if Bitcoin loses key support or ETF outflows persist. Watching ETF flows, derivatives positioning and the 60,00065,000 dollar zone on BTC will be crucial for understanding whether this is a temporary flush or the start of a deeper correction.
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