Whales Panic as Crypto Liquidations Near $1 Billion Amid Market Freefall

The crypto market experienced a dramatic downturn over the past 24 hours, with nearly $1 billion in liquidations wiping out traders’ positions. 

This sharp plunge followed a turbulent start to the week that had already seen $620.5 million in losses.

Crypto Liquidations Reach Nearly $1 Billion

According to Coinglass, 334,404 traders were liquidated in the past 24 hours, totaling $947.7 million. Long positions were the hardest hit, with $742.2 million liquidated. 

Meanwhile, short positions accounted for $205.5 million. This indicated that the market moved against those who expected prices to rise, causing them greater financial losses.

Bitcoin (BTC) saw the largest liquidation, with $317.9 million wiped out. Of this, $242.1 million was from long positions and $75.8 million from shorts. Ethereum (ETH) fared similarly, with $248.2 million in liquidations, $196.4 million of which was from long positions.

Adding fuel to the fire, significant movements of cryptocurrency by major players have intensified fears of a broader sell-off. 

According to Arkham Intelligence, Mt. Gox, the defunct exchange still distributing assets to creditors, transferred 11,834 BTC—valued at approximately $931.1 million—to an unknown address.

A few hours after this, Mt. Gox’s cold wallet again transferred 332 BTC worth $26.6 million to another address. These transfers came shortly after its earlier movement of 12,000 BTC worth $1 billion at the time.

Furthermore, Spot On Chain observed that after five months of dormancy, an Ethereum ICO whale deposited 7,000 ETH  worth $12.9 million to Kraken as the price dropped. The whale still holds 30,070 ETH ($54.4 million) in its wallet.

Additionally, Longling Capital transferred 21,000 ETH ($38.8 million) to Binance. In a separate incident, a whale sold 25,800 ETH at a $31.7 million loss to prevent further liquidation.

The latest wave of volatility was triggered by comments from President Donald Trump, who hinted at an impending recession.

“Look, we’re going to have disruption, but we’re ok with that,” Trump told Fox News.

His remarks sent shockwaves through financial markets, with stocks tumbling and cryptocurrencies bearing the brunt of the fallout. According to The Kobeissi Letter, a prominent financial newsletter, the decline erased the post-US Reserve announcement rally. The cryptocurrency market dipped $1.3 trillion from its peak on December 17, 2024.

“Not only does this mean crypto’s bear market has begun, but it’s also down 35% in three months,” the post read.

Notably, Bitcoin, the leading digital asset, fell to $76,600 today. This marked its lowest level in four months. It had slightly recovered to $79,939 at press time, still down 3.2% over the past day.

According to BeInCrypto data, Ethereum experienced an 8.4% decline over the past 24 hours. At press time, it was trading at $1,895. This drop marks the lowest price level for the cryptocurrency since late 2023, reflecting a significant downturn in its value.