The crypto market just got a brutal reminder of what happens when euphoria runs ahead of fundamentals. A sharp round of profit-taking wiped out over $675 million in positions in just 24 hours, making it one of the biggest liquidation events since April. And leading the red wave was Dogecoin (DOGE-USD), which dropped more than 7.6%, becoming the day’s worst-performing major cryptocurrency.
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The biggest chunk of the liquidations came from long positions, where over $406 million in bullish bets were forcefully closed as prices started to reverse. Another $269 million in short positions also got wiped out, signaling how volatile the past day has been for both sides of the market. It was, in short, a high-volume, high-stress reset.
Bitcoin Bears the Brunt, But Altcoins Feel It Too
Unsurprisingly, the largest hit was taken by Bitcoin (BTC-USD) long positions, which saw more than $333 million in forced closures, followed by Ethereum (ETH-USD) at $113 million and XRP (XRP-USD) at around $36 million. Solana (SOL-USD) and Dogecoin (DOGE-USD) were not spared either, each taking hits of around $14 million.
The single biggest liquidation came from a $98.1 million BTC/USDT long position on Binance, according to Coinglass. That’s the kind of trade that normally rides market momentum, until it doesn’t.
Dogecoin’s outsized drop is particularly notable. The meme coin had been riding a wave of speculative energy over the past few weeks, but when the broader market flipped to risk-off mode, Dogecoin was the first to tumble. Its steep loss underlines just how fragile some of the recent gains were, especially in altcoins with looser fundamentals.
Leverage Looks Risky Again as Traders Pull Back
Despite Bitcoin still trading close to its all-time highs near $117,000, traders seem increasingly hesitant to push the rally further. Analysts at QCP Capital noted that funding rates remain elevated, making leveraged long positions more expensive and riskier to hold. And with memories still fresh from February’s brutal $2 billion liquidation event, many market participants are now hitting the brakes.
Options data reflects that same hesitation. While short-term implied volatility is beginning to creep higher, it’s still sitting below historical averages. Interestingly, risk reversals on longer-dated options (like those expiring in September or December) continue to lean bullish. This shows that while longer-term optimism is still in place, traders do not want to get caught offside in the short term.
$150K BTC Still on the Table, But Caution Rules the Day
Analysts are still generally bullish on Bitcoin’s long-term trajectory, but they’re warning that the road upward will not be smooth. Ryan Lee of Bitget told CoinDesk that $150,000 BTC by Q3 is still a realistic target, supported by strong ETF inflows, reduced supply, and macro forces like a weakening dollar and potential rate cuts by the Federal Reserve.
At the same time, Lee cautioned against assuming Bitcoin’s rise will be linear. With such sharp movements in leveraged positions and liquidations already piling up, the market could enter a short-term consolidation phase. He pointed to a possible pullback into the $105,000 to $115,000 range, especially if rate speculation or geopolitical noise sparks another wave of selling.
Investors can stay on top of real-time prices, market trends, and top-performing digital assets through the TipRanks Cryptocurrency Center.
