Bearish crypto bets lose record $2.7 billion as bitcoin surges toward $70,000
A rapid surge in bitcoin prices toward $70,000 triggered a massive liquidation of bearish short positions, totaling $2.7 billion. This event marks one of the largest short squeezes in crypto history, significantly impacting traders across bitcoin, ether, and solana.
Why it matters
The record-breaking liquidation highlights the extreme volatility of cryptocurrency markets and the high-risk nature of leveraged trading strategies.
Total liquidations reached nearly $3 billion across 172,108 traders, according to CoinGlass . Shorts accounted for roughly 92% of that, against $257 million on the long side, a ratio of more than ten to one.
The comparison that gives the number its weight comes from last October. On Oct. 10, 2025, bitcoin crashed days after setting a record above $126,000, producing $19 billion of liquidations in a single day, still the largest deleveraging event in crypto history. Shorts made up $2.47 billion of it at the time.
Wednesday's short liquidations were larger than that, without any of the accompanying carnage on the long side.
Bitcoin traded just above $69,100 in Asian morning hours Thursday, up almost 8% over 24 hours after touching nearly $69,900, a swing of more than $5,700 from Wednesday's low near $64,100. It has not traded at these levels since early June.
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