Crypto Market Plunges: $90 Billion Lost, $1.3 Billion Liquidated in a Single Hour
The cryptocurrency market has experienced one of its most severe sell-offs in months, witnessing a staggering $90 billion in market value evaporate within just one hour. This dramatic downturn triggered over $1.3 billion in forced liquidations as leveraged trading positions were wiped out across major exchanges, sending shockwaves through the digital asset landscape.
Federal Reserve Hawkishness Sparks Panic
The precipitous decline is largely attributed to renewed hawkish sentiment from the Federal Reserve. Despite recent interest rate cuts, Fed Chair Jerome Powell's remarks indicating that inflation remains "on the wrong path" ignited fears across global risk markets. His statements bolstered the U.S. Dollar Index (DXY) to its highest level since August, further intensifying pressure on speculative assets like cryptocurrencies. Bitcoin (BTC) plummeted below the critical $105,000 mark, breaching key support zones at $110,000 and $106,000, prompting institutional investors to offload positions via U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs and exacerbating the downward spiral.
Mass Liquidations and Extreme Fear Grips Market
The fallout from the market crash resulted in widespread liquidations, with CoinGlass reporting total liquidations exceeding $1.37 billion in a 24-hour period. A significant 90% of these liquidations stemmed from long positions, indicating a market caught off-guard. Bitcoin led the liquidations with over $396 million, closely followed by Ethereum (ETH) at $368 million. A single, colossal $47.8 million BTC-USDT long position on HTX Exchange highlighted the extent of the leverage unwind. The Crypto Fear and Greed Index consequently plunged to 21, signaling "Extreme Fear" among investors, with over 327,000 traders affected, reminiscent of the October 11 flash crash that liquidated 1.6 million traders.
Altcoins Bear the Brunt as Market Cap Shrinks
Altcoins suffered even heavier losses than Bitcoin, struggling amidst thin liquidity and cascading sell orders. Solana (SOL) dropped 8% to below $160, while Ethereum slipped 5% to $3,500. Other major altcoins like XRP and Cardano (ADA) also tumbled over 5.5%. This broad-market decline has shrunk the total crypto market capitalization to below $3.5 trillion, marking its lowest point since July. While some market analysts view this correction as a "healthy reset" after aggressive rallies, warnings loom large: if Bitcoin fails to reclaim the $100,000 psychological support, an additional 5-8% downside could impact the broader market. Traders are bracing for heightened volatility as the crypto storm intensifies.
