Crypto News | $1.5 Billion in Leveraged Crypto Bets Liquidated as Bitcoin Dips to $76,460, Then a Rebound Starts Squeezing Shorts

Leveraged crypto traders had $1.53 billion in positions forcibly closed over the 24 hours to Friday morning in Asia, according to CoinGlass, as bitcoin, ether and smaller tokens fell. Traders betting on higher prices took the brunt: long positions made up 83.8% of the total, or about $1.29 billion. A rebound has since begun catching traders on the other side.Most of the Damage Came in 12 HoursAbout $1.37 billion of the liquidations, including $1.23 billion of longs, came in the latest 12 hours. The sell-off followed Thursday’s security incident at Binance, which the exchange estimates affected about $6.3 billion in assets. Binance has pledged to cover affected users’ losses and suspended deposits and withdrawals while it runs security checks.Bitcoin fell as low as about $76,460 before recovering toward $78,500. Ether traded around $2,240 after dipping below $2,200, while SOL, XRP and dogecoin also fell.How Liquidations Add to SellingLeveraged traders put up only a fraction of a position’s value as collateral. When prices move far enough against them, the exchange closes the trade automatically to prevent further losses. Closing a long generates a sell order, which adds pressure when prices are already falling.Bitcoin and Ether Made Up More Than HalfBitcoin positions accounted for about $499 million of liquidations and ether $358 million, together more than half the total. Solana followed at $82.6 million, XRP at $38.1 million and dogecoin at $18.6 million.   The Rebound Turns on Short SellersAs prices recovered, traders betting on further declines began to be squeezed. Shorts accounted for $57.3 million of the $85 million liquidated in the latest four hours, and about 95% of liquidations in the latest hour, $20.6 million of $21.6 million. Closing a short requires buying back the position, so forced short closures can add to buying pressure as prices rise.