Crypto Bulls Face $600M in Liquidations as Bitcoin Slips Under $104K - Cryptured.com

Bitcoin (BTC) prices dropped below $104,000 in the past day, causing a wave of liquidations in the cryptocurrency markets. The worst losses since February, totaling about $600 million, resulted from forced settlements of bullish futures positions.

The market was extremely hopeful, as traders were hit with $688 million in restructurings, 89% of which were on the long side. As per Coinglass data, the largest settlement order on OKX was worth $12.25 million BTC/USDT.

Bitcoin-tracked futures lost more than $153 million, more than Ethereum (ETH), which suffered more than $122 million. Liquidations of more than $33 million were made for Solana (SOL), $30 million for XRP options, and more than $22 million for Dogecoin (DOGE) contracts.

According to Alex Kuptsikevich, chief market analyst at FxPro, new worries about tariffs caused markets to weaken on Friday.

After accusing China of violating a bilateral trade deal, U.S. President Donald Trump was compelled to increase steel and aluminum tariffs to 50% in order to protect domestic companies. China broke a May agreement to ease trade tensions, he said, adding that he may talk to President Xi about the issue.

While China is a large steel exporter, the majority of its material currently is subject to prevailing tariffs, according to Reuters. Trump’s move jolted global trade markets, potentially affecting crucial minerals and overall bilateral relations.

The bigger cryptocurrency market was also hit by the sell-off, with Dogecoin falling more than 8% for the day, XRP and Solana losing about 4-5%, and Ether down about 4%.

Deribit data shows that open interest in Bitcoin futures has risen 51% since April, while options have risen 126%, suggesting that investors are becoming more in need of leverage. Whales, who own more than 10,000 Bitcoin, have changed their strategy from storing to selling, releasing coins to trading networks in a well-known sign of profit-taking.

A series of liquidations frequently signals market extremes, when a price reversal may be on the horizon as emotion in the market overshoots in one way. Nevertheless, traders are preparing for further volatility in the future due to the rekindled tariff flare-up and an apprehensive derivatives market.