Bitcoin Liquidations Surge Past $375 Million as BTC Shatters $96,000 Barrier
Markets just got a brutal reminder of crypto's volatility. A massive wave of liquidations hit traders as Bitcoin punched through a key psychological level.
The Price of Progress
Every major move creates winners and losers. This rally was no different, wiping out leveraged positions to the tune of hundreds of millions. The mechanics are simple: rapid price appreciation triggers margin calls, forcing automated sell-offs that can amplify the move itself. It's the market's way of collecting a toll for the ride up.
Beyond the Headline Number
Focusing solely on the liquidation figure misses the forest for the trees. The real story is the underlying momentum that propelled the asset to such heights. This kind of price action doesn't happen in a vacuum—it signals a potent mix of institutional accumulation and retail FOMO reaching a boiling point. Traditional finance pundits, of course, will call it irrational. They always do right before they quietly allocate a fraction of their portfolio to 'digital gold.'
A Necessary Cleansing
While painful for those caught on the wrong side, these liquidation events serve a purpose. They flush out excessive leverage, creating a healthier foundation for the next leg up. It's a violent reset that transfers assets from weak hands to strong ones. Think of it as the market's risk management protocol—ruthless, but effective.
The takeaway? Bitcoin's journey is never a smooth ascent. It's a series of explosive breakthroughs followed by violent shakeouts. This latest move proves the asset's strength, but also offers a classic finance jab: sometimes, the most bullish signal is the sound of over-leveraged speculators getting wrecked.
Cumulative short liquidation leverage at $96,202 peaks at 451.49 million
Data from the onchain data provider Coinglass shows that Bitcoin was responsible for $375.85 million worth of liquidations in the last 24 hours. According to the data, the Cumulative short liquidation leverage peaks at $451.49 million, around $96,202. 48.79 million are on Binance, while 54.47 million and 67 million are held on OKX and Bybit, respectively. The data indicates that liquidations are likely to occur once BTC surpasses $97,100.
Another chart from Coinglass, showing the BTC/USDT perpetual liquidation map on Binance, indicates that the cumulative short liquidation leverage on the exchange at $96,282 stands at 157.04 million, with the majority being 100X leverage, accounting for 19.50 million. 50x leverage follows with 14.70 million, the whole 25x leverage trails last with 1.14 million
Large investors have showcased renewed interest in BTC, adding to the bullish sentiment in the crypto asset. Data from ETF tracking Website SosoValue shows that BTC ETFs received inflows worth $753.73 million. The inflows marked a two-day streak of positive flows that began on January 12 after investors drew 1.3 billion from the funds in the preceding four days.
Fidelity’s FBTC received the majority of the inflows, totaling $351.36 million, followed by BlackRock’s iBIT, which logged $126.27 million. Bitwise BITB recorded positive flows worth $159.42 million, while Ark & 21Shares recorded $84.88 million in inflows.
Michael Saylor’s software company has also added more Bitcoin to its books. A previous Cryptopolitan report, dated January 12, noted that Strategy purchased 13,627 Bitcoin for $1.25 billion, resulting in an average buying price of $91,519.
The company now holds 687,410 Bitcoin, valued at $66.33 billion at current prices, and remains the undisputed leader in corporate BTC holdings. Data from Bitcoin treasuries shows that the software company’s BTC holdings have increased by 27.78%.
Bitcoin shows signs of recovery as analysts predict higher prices
Bitcoin is showing signs of recovery amid growing uncertainty about future crypto prices this year. Data from the crypto data aggregating platform CoinMarketCap shows that BTC is exchanging hands for $95,734 at the time of publication. The data also shows that the crypto asset has risen by 4.6% in the last seven days. The crypto asset is already up 9.56% since the start of the year.
Crypto analysts predict that the crypto asset could perform significantly well this year. A previous report compiled by Mercado Bitcoin, a Latin American crypto exchange based in São Paulo, predicts that the general crypto market will experience notable performance in 2026. The report highlighted that the price of BTC is expected to double before the end of the year.
If the prediction comes true, Bitcoin will be worth between $180,000 and $200,000. The report highlighted ongoing regulatory developments in the cryptocurrency industry and the increasing demand for cryptocurrency exposure among regulated private and publicly listed companies. According to the exchange, Bitcoin’s market cap will reach 14% of gold’s market capitalization.
Cryptoquant data also indicates that Binance’s Bitcoin-to-stablecoin ratio has increased, signaling a potential breakout for BTC. Cryptopolitan reported on January 6 that the ratio was 1.0, indicating that stablecoin reserves on the exchange are rising and now represent a larger portion of Binance’s reserves.
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