$440 Million in Crypto Positions Liquidated as Bitcoin Falls 3.4% on Oct. 23
Key Facts
Bitcoin fell to about $81,500 on Oct. 23, down 3.4% over 24 hours, as a sell-off spread from Wall Street to Asian stocks, according to a report published by The Block. The report said at least $440 million in leveraged cryptocurrency positions were liquidated in the 24 hours through its publication. The liquidations included $397 million in long positions, making them the largest portion of the stated total. The figures came amid a broader retreat in risk assets. U.S. indexes also posted steep losses in Thursday's session before pressure widened to Asian markets.
The cryptocurrency decline coincided with a 2.6% fall in the Nasdaq and a 1.2% drop in the S&P 500 in Thursday's session, according to The Block report published Friday. The Nasdaq's decline was its worst since June, while the S&P 500 recorded its weakest daily performance since July, the report said. In the cryptocurrency market, at least $440 million in positions were liquidated over 24 hours, including $397 million in long positions. The figures show that liquidations were concentrated in positions betting on higher prices. In an earlier snapshot published by TokenPost on Oct. 22, total liquidations across Binance, Bybit and OKX were about $236.7 million, including $107.3 million in long positions and $129.4 million in short positions. The two snapshots differ in source and measurement time, so they are not a like-for-like comparison for the same period.
As for funds, U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded net outflows of $635.6 million on Thursday, after adding $528.4 million the previous day, according to The Block. Thursday's outflows therefore exceeded Wednesday's inflows. Still, weekly net flows remained positive at $442.7 million for the week of Oct. 19–23. The weekly tally shows that the opposing daily flows had not erased net inflows through Thursday. The shift in flows coincided with Bitcoin's decline and the liquidation of leveraged positions. The report gave no figure linking fund movements to liquidations and identified no direct cause for either.
On the price action, Jeff Anderson of STS Digital said Bitcoin had remained tied to technology stocks, noting that the market was watching a range between $80,000 and $86,000 for a breakout. He said: "We don't read too much into this move; the recent range is $80,000 to $86,000, while we watch for a breakout of either of these levels." His comments came after the report said the sell-off had spread from U.S. stocks to their Asian counterparts. It also said the decline coincided with losses in the Nasdaq and S&P 500 in Thursday's session. The range Anderson identified frames the price action around levels traders are watching, without the report giving a subsequent breakout outcome.
The TokenPost snapshot on Oct. 22 had recorded a 2.53% decline in the cryptocurrency market capitalization to $2.79 trillion over the 24 hours through 05:05 UTC, with $236.7 million in liquidations across Binance, Bybit and OKX. In the same snapshot, Bitcoin fell 0.08% to $82,845, market trading volume was $88.01 billion, and Bitcoin accounted for 59.5% of the market, compared with 10.7% for Ethereum. Earlier, a TokenPost snapshot published on Oct. 20 recorded a 0.35% decline in market capitalization to $2.76 trillion in late trading on Oct. 19. Trading volume then stood at $73.38 billion, and Bitcoin made up 59.6% of market capitalization. Liquidations in the Oct. 19 snapshot were about $164 million, including $117.4 million in short positions and $46.7 million in long positions. These earlier snapshots reflect market and liquidation levels on their specified dates and do not substantiate the Oct. 24 snapshot figures included in the first draft.
Traders turned their attention to the Federal Reserve's rate decision scheduled for Oct. 28, followed by the U.S. midterm elections on Nov. 3, according to The Block report published on Oct. 22. The report listed the two dates among events traders were watching in the market. The Oct. 23 report had quoted Anderson as saying Bitcoin remained tied to technology stocks and traders were watching a range of $80,000 to $86,000. In his words, the market was watching for a breakout at either end of that range. The report did not include the outcome of the rate decision or the elections, as neither had taken place when it was published. The two dates follow the liquidations and price declines recorded on Oct. 23.