Bitcoin Surges Beyond $118K, Forcing Over $1B in Short Liquidations
Bitcoin’s relentless rally punched through the $118,000 barrier on Thursday, triggering the year’s biggest wipeout for traders betting against the market. In the past 24 hours, more than $1.13 billion in crypto positions were liquidated, with short sellers accounting for a hefty $1.01 billion of that total—the largest short-side flush of 2025 so far.
Open interest in bitcoin futures soared by $2 billion within four hours, as traders placed increasingly bullish bets. The long-short ratio now leans toward buyers, standing at 52%. Bitcoin futures led the liquidation spree with $590 million in forced closures, followed by $241 million in ether futures.
Roughly 237,000 traders saw positions wiped out. The single biggest loss was an $88.5 million BTC-USDT short on HTX. Overall, nearly 90% of the liquidated positions were shorts, underscoring just how heavily traders had wagered on prices falling.
Bybit took the brunt of the hit, recording $461 million in total liquidations, over 93% of which were shorts. Binance and HTX also faced significant pain, with $204 million and $193 million in liquidations, respectively.
Short liquidations often fuel further price climbs, as exchanges are forced to buy back assets to close out losing positions—creating a feedback loop that drives prices even higher.
Bitcoin’s breakout coincides with renewed optimism across crypto markets, driven by bullish signals in U.S. policy discussions and strength in equities. Alongside bitcoin’s gains, altcoins rallied as well, with XRP climbing to $2.76, ether (ETH) approaching $3,000, and dogecoin and solana advancing by as much as 5%.
