Bitcoin dropped to $80,400 on Thursday, its lowest level since September 21, before clawing back above $81,000, while nearly $1.19 billion in leveraged positions were liquidated across the cryptocurrency market in 24 hours.
The move in numbers
Over the past day Bitcoin slipped 0.44 percent and Ethereum fell 2.47 percent to $2,498, according to exchange data cited by Delta Exchange and Mudrex. The weekly tally shows Bitcoin down 4.65 percent and Ethereum down 9.45 percent, with major altcoins including BNB, Solana, Dogecoin and Cardano correcting up to 12.30 percent over the same period. Broad market capitalization stood at $2.77 trillion with 24-hour volume of $120.75 billion, per WazirX.
What drove the sell-off
The pullback coincided with a broader risk-off move across technology stocks and crypto, attributed by CoinSwitch Markets Desk to rising oil prices near $105, geopolitical uncertainty involving Iran, and Federal Reserve minutes signaling another rate hike before year-end. The 10-year Treasury yield reached a 24-year high near 5.3 percent. Bitcoin recovered some ground after former President Trump ruled out U.S. strikes on Iran before the midterms, according to Mudrex.
Key levels and positioning
Support has shifted to $80,000 with resistance at $85,000, Gupta of Mudrex noted. Giottus chief executive Vikram Subburaj flagged $81,000 as the immediate level to watch and advised staggering purchases while avoiding high leverage until Bitcoin reclaims $83,300 and then $85,500 alongside stronger ETF inflows. About $1.8 billion in options expire Friday, adding to potential volatility.
The liquidation backdrop
Delta Exchange analyst Piyush Walke put the 24-hour liquidation figure at nearly $1 billion, while Thukral cited $1.19 billion and noted that the largest single liquidation in history, around $16 billion, occurred at the same time last year. The concentration of forced selling underscores how leveraged the market remains despite the exchange-traded fund inflows of recent quarters.