Bitcoin and altcoins selloffs have pushed combined market liquidation above the $300 million threshold.
The crypto market is experiencing a brutal shakeup, with $328 million in liquidations, dragging traders to the edge. Major altcoins like Ethereum ETH $2 606 24h volatility: 2.4% Market cap: $314.71 B Vol. 24h: $14.97 B , Solana SOL $156.7 24h volatility: 6.2% Market cap: $82.82 B Vol. 24h: $4.87 B , and Cardano ADA $0.64 24h volatility: 1.7% Market cap: $23.27 B Vol. 24h: $397.20 M suffered double-digit losses over the week. Meanwhile, Bitcoin BTC $106 555 24h volatility: 0.6% Market cap: $2.12 T Vol. 24h: $20.52 B managed to hold its ground comparatively better.
Crypto Liquidation Grows As Bitcoin Stands Steady
According to Coinglass data, traders on centralized exchanges faced an avalanche of liquidations totaling $328.45 million in just 24 hours. Traders betting on rising prices, or those taking long positions, lost $262.41 million. This left many optimistic traders facing big losses.
Traders who profit from falling prices, known as short sellers, lost $66.04 million. This shows that the sell-off is more favorable in liquidation terms to those betting on price drops. The scale of this sell-off underscores how fragile the market has become under mounting external pressures.
Ethereum (ETH) led the downturn, plunging by 5% within a day and over 14% for the week. Solana (SOL) and Cardano (ADA) did not fare much better, dropping 17% and 16% over the same timeframe.
This steep decline was not limited to just a few tokens. The altcoins market as a whole saw significant losses, signaling widespread investor anxiety.
While altcoins crumbled, Bitcoin showed its strength. The world’s largest cryptocurrency dropped only 2% over the past day and 6% weekly. This resilience has analysts speculating that institutions and big players might be the backbone of Bitcoin’s relative stability.
Bitcoin’s dominance, a metric that measures its share of the overall crypto market, has climbed to 54.8%. In contrast, Ethereum’s market dominance slipped to 11.3%, highlighting Bitcoin’s growing preference as a haven amid uncertainty.
Despite the heavy losses, there is a silver lining. History shows that long-term investors often step in to buy at lower prices after short-term traders throw in the towel.
These market veterans see dips like this as opportunities, not disasters.
What’s Behind the Panic? Macroeconomic Forces at Play
Still, challenges loom. The U.S. dollar is stronger than ever, and rising Treasury yields make riskier assets like crypto less attractive. This is because a stronger dollar makes digital assets more expensive for investors from other countries, which hurts crypto markets.
These crypto liquidation challenges are made worse by worries about upcoming economic reports. Market participants are closely watching the Federal Reserve, with most expecting rates to stay at 4.25%-4.5% for most of 2025.
However, optimism about rate cuts is fading, and Bank of America warned that further hikes are possible. This uncertainty adds to the bearish mood in both crypto and traditional markets.
Major indices like the Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&P 500 Index, and Nasdaq Composite are also under pressure. As the crypto market braces for the upcoming inflation data, Bitcoin faces a critical test of its reputation as an inflation hedge.
If macroeconomic conditions worsen, Bitcoin could find itself at a crossroads. The virtual asset can either become a safe place for investors or be dragged down by the pressures affecting altcoins. For now, investors are choosing to stay less exposed to risk assets.
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