Bitcoin fell below $82,000 on October 12, triggering a cascade of liquidations across the entire crypto market. Contrary to what the main figure might suggest, the $406 million does not only concern BTC, but all long positions recorded in 24 hours.
In brief
- Bitcoin fell below $82,000 on October 12, after falling almost 4%.
- More than 118,000 traders were liquidated in 24 hours, for a total of $488.61 million.
- Long positions account for $406.48 million in liquidations, or 83.2% of the total.
- Leverage and capital outflows from Bitcoin ETFs have added pressure to the market.
- Investors are now monitoring US inflation and the thresholds of $81,000 and $85,000.
More than 118,000 traders liquidated in one day
Bitcoin fell from a daily high near $84,254 to a low around $81,000. This drop of almost 4% was enough to automatically close many leveraged financed positions.
According to the data collected on the evening of October 12, liquidations reached $488.61 million across the entire crypto market. They affected 118,142 traders in 24 hours.
Long positions, which were betting on a price increase, represented $406.48 million, or 83.2% of the total. Short positions saw $82.14 million in liquidations.
Ethereum suffered the highest amount per asset, at $115.19 million. Bitcoin comes next with 106.61 million, ahead of Solana at 26.97 million. Zcash and NEAR each approached $20 million.
The largest individual liquidation involved a long bitcoin position of $9.65 million. It was executed on Binance when BTC was trading around $81,772. The platform accounted for 52.3% of recorded liquidations.
Leverage amplified bitcoin’s decline
A liquidation occurs when losses from a leveraged position reduce the available margin below the level required by the platform. The exchange then automatically closes the position to prevent the loss from exceeding the collateral deposited.
This closure often involves an immediate sale of the asset. When many long positions are clustered around the same levels, an initial decline can trigger several forced sells. These operations push the price down further and activate new liquidations.
The $406 million therefore does not necessarily represent capital entirely lost by traders. The amount corresponds to the notional value of closed contracts, which can significantly exceed the margin actually committed.
The concentration of losses on the buyers’ side nevertheless shows that the market was positioned too optimistically. Bitcoin had repeatedly tried to exceed the $84,000 to $85,000 zone, without obtaining sufficient demand to continue its rebound.
Its passage below 82,000 dollars then transformed an ordinary decline into a more brutal movement. BTC has since recovered to around $82,800, but remains below its October 12 high.
ETF outflows weigh on demand
The correction comes after a negative week for US spot bitcoin ETFs. From October 5-9, these funds saw approximately $679 million in net outflows.
The October 7 session concentrated $484.9 million in withdrawals. This was followed by 244.1 million exits the next day. A limited return of $21.1 million on October 9 did not offset that pressure.
These figures indicate a temporary weakening of institutional demand accessible by American markets. However, they are not enough to demonstrate that ETFs directly caused the fall of October 12.
The decline is rather the result of a combination of factors: failure under technical resistance, too many long positions, less dynamic spot demand and caution before the next US economic statistics.
Altcoins have followed suit, as their lower liquidity generally makes them more susceptible to bitcoin swings and forced closures in derivatives markets.
US inflation becomes the next test
Investors are now awaiting the publication of the American consumer price index, scheduled for October 14. Higher-than-expected inflation could reinforce expectations of high rates and weigh on risky assets.
In the short term, the $81,000 to $82,000 area serves as the first support for bitcoin. Its rupture would expose the market to further downward acceleration, particularly if other concentrations of long positions are below this threshold.
On the contrary, a sustainable return above $84,000 would neutralize part of the pressure. BTC should then cross $85,000 to restart a more convincing dynamic.
The wave of liquidations has already removed some of the excess leverage. However, it does not guarantee that the correction is over: the next direction will depend more on real demand than on bets accumulated on derivative contracts.
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