- Bitcoin briefly dipped to $100,000 following a sharp, broad market sell-off.
- Over $1.6 billion in leveraged long positions were liquidated within 24 hours.
- The crash was driven by a “risk-off” mood and uncertainty around the Fed’s rate cut timeline.
The cryptocurrency market was shaken by a wave of forced selling late Monday, triggering a steep drop that briefly pushed Bitcoin down to the $100,000 level and wiped out more than $1.6 billion in leveraged bullish positions.
The sudden deleveraging event—one of the largest since September—sent shockwaves across the digital-asset space, as major altcoins such as Ether, Solana and XRP suffered significant losses amid renewed macroeconomic fears that spooked investors.
At the heart of the market turmoil was a massive cascade of liquidations. Over the past 24 hours, more than $2 billion in crypto futures contracts were forcibly closed, with long traders—those betting on higher prices—accounting for nearly 80% of the losses, roughly $1.6 billion, according to CoinGlass data.
This automated selling pressure occurs when traders using borrowed funds see positions move sharply against them, forcing exchanges to sell the underlying assets to cover losses.
Macro headwinds and a risk-off mood
The sell-off was driven by a broader “risk-off” mood spreading across financial markets.
Analysts pointed to a combination of factors unnerving investors and prompting them to shed speculative assets.
“Recent speculation that the FOMC could delay another rate cut this year, alongside concerns about tariffs, credit market conditions and equity valuations, helped push markets lower,” said Gerry O’Shea, head of global market insights at Hashdex, in an email to CoinDesk.
He added that Bitcoin’s price was also affected by profit-taking from long-term holders, which he described as “an expected phenomenon as the asset matures.”
Bitcoin at a crossroads: testing support
After the drop, Bitcoin staged a modest rebound to trade around $101,000. Still, the token fell about 5.5% over the past 24 hours and more than 10% for the week.
The pain was deeper for many altcoins: Ether slid roughly 10%, while Solana and BNB dropped about 8% and 7%, respectively.
Despite the sharp decline, some analysts maintain a constructive long-term view for Bitcoin.
“While $100,000 can be a psychologically significant support level, we do not view today’s price action as evidence that the long-term investment case for Bitcoin has weakened,” O’Shea said.
With the Federal Reserve’s next move uncertain and global risk appetite fragile, the coming days will be a key test for the market—to determine whether Bitcoin can hold its current levels or if another wave of forced selling lies ahead.