Bitcoin took a sharp plunge during Asian trading on Thursday, dropping all the way to 61,442 dollars. The world’s largest cryptocurrency later staged a modest rebound to hover near 63,832 dollars. Still, this left Bitcoin at its lowest point in nearly four months, trading almost 50 percent below its high from October.
A wave of liquidations sweeps the market
The steep price decline set off a chain reaction across the cryptocurrency sector, accelerating forced liquidations. According to data from CoinGlass, more than 208,000 investors saw their positions wiped out over the past 24 hours. Bitcoin trades accounted for over 800 million dollars of these losses, while Ethereum transactions contributed an additional 386 million dollars. In total, market liquidations soared past 1.5 billion dollars in a single day.
CoinGlass data reveals that over 208,000 investors were liquidated in the past 24 hours, with total liquidations exceeding 1.5 billion dollars.
Analysts at Presto Research emphasized that Bitcoin’s sluggish performance throughout the year has coincided with powerhouse rallies in precious metals and artificial intelligence-focused equities. They suggest that as expectations for US Federal Reserve rate cuts have faded, investors have shown a greater appetite for these alternative assets instead of cryptocurrencies.
Record Bitcoin moved onto exchanges
Crypto analyst Ali Charts reported that 54,000 BTC have been transferred to trading platforms over the past seven days. This massive movement translates to a potential 3.78 billion dollars in added selling pressure. Ali Charts noted that the rising supply on exchanges has accelerated short-term sales, pushing Bitcoin’s price downward.
Ali Charts observed that the relocation of 54,000 BTC to exchanges within one week triggered approximately 3.78 billion dollars in extra selling pressure.
ETF outflows signal weak institutional demand
Institutional investor interest also appeared subdued. According to SoSoValue data, US-based spot Bitcoin ETFs saw net outflows of nearly 1 billion dollars this week. On Wednesday alone, investors pulled out 396 million dollars.
Over the last three weeks, Bitcoin exchange-traded products have registered combined outflows totaling 3.7 billion dollars. Notably, a significant portion of this capital has been redirected toward artificial intelligence stocks, which are increasingly seen as defensive plays backed by robust corporate earnings.
Geopolitical tensions and sales by major holders add to the pressure
Escalating tensions between the US and Iran have further fueled market anxiety. The growing uncertainty has intensified risk aversion across global markets, bolstering demand for the dollar while pressuring volatile assets like cryptocurrencies. Fears that a prolonged conflict could spark energy-driven inflation have heightened the rush to safer havens.
Adding to the anxiety, Strategy, one of the largest institutional holders of Bitcoin, sold part of its BTC holdings this week. This move marked the company’s first Bitcoin sale in almost four years. While the sale itself was relatively limited, it raised new questions about the company’s long-standing accumulation strategy.
Analysts at Presto Research noted that any potential rebound in Bitcoin may depend not just on cryptocurrency-specific developments, but also on broader macroeconomic conditions. Easing inflation and a renewed appetite for liquidity-sensitive assets could be vital drivers of recovery for the market.
