Bitcoin has violently breached the $77,000 level for the first time in 11 weeks, triggering a massive $747.81 million liquidation event that wiped out over 164,835 traders. The rally, which propelled the global crypto market cap to $2.61 trillion, is marked by a stark contradiction: soaring prices are met with persistent bearish sentiment, as evidenced by a single BTC/USD trade on Hyperliquid accounting for a $15.75 million wipeout.

Bitcoin rally triggers Short Squeeze?

Bears were seen bleeding as more than 78% of the liquidated positions turned out to be short bets. More than $585 million worth of short bets were liquidated in the period. Data shows that Bitcoin itself accounted for around $378 million of the total liquidations. Over 91% of the liquidated positions ($344 million) turned out to be short bets. This suggests that traders were hoping for Bitcoin price to remain low or fall, however, BTC price jumped by more than 3% in the last 24 hours to peek $78,000.

Yet even as bears bleed, conviction hasn’t flipped. Funding rates for perpetual futures remain negative. This signals that leveraged traders are still betting against the rally. This bearish positioning has now persisted for roughly 46 consecutive days. This is reportedly one of the longest such stretches since the collapse of FTX in 2022.

Markets have already started to show signs of those squeeze patterns. Bitcoin price pump came alongside a broader risk-on shift across global markets. Positive comments from the US and Iran have pushed the market.

Equities climbed, oil and the dollar weakened, and the crypto market followed it. Ethereum price jumped by more than 3% over the last 24 hours. ETH is trading at $2,420 at the press time. Ether price move led to the liquidation of $162 million. However, $142 million worth of the liquidated positions (87%) were short bets.

RaveDAO emerged as the biggest gainer among the top 100 cryptos in this period. RAVE price is up by 25%, it is trading around $21.69.

ETF Inflows lifting BTC?

Derivatives positioning suggests traders are not buying the narrative. Options markets show heavy demand for downside protection. Traders are reportedly paying premiums for puts at $60,000 and even $50,000 levels. Meanwhile, retail participation appears cautious. Ongoing geopolitical uncertainty and repeated ceasefire headlines have created fatigue. It is leaving many traders hesitant to chase rallies.

🫨 Bitcoin sentiment is at an extreme low during a time you may expect FOMO to be trickling in. Despite $BTC surpassing $77K today (for the first time in 11 weeks), there are 3 bearish comments for every 2 bullish comments about Bitcoin.

😫 Retail is experiencing quite a bit of… pic.twitter.com/sO22pBLQ42

— Santiment (@santimentfeed) April 17, 2026

Spot demand is also showing signs of recovery. Bitcoin has climbed around 14% from its April lows. This surge seems to be supported by renewed inflows into crypto-linked ETFs. Fresh data shows that net inflows have breached $332 million this week,

April 16, 2026, saw $26.05 million following in the BTC ETFs. Ether ETFs closed the day with $18.02 million in net inflows. This was their sixth straight positive session.

BlackRock’s IBIT led with $81.71 million in net inflows. This lifts its cumulative total to $64.35 billion. Grayscale’s BTC added $16.67 million. It brings its cumulative total to $2.23 billion. Morgan Stanley’s MSBT added another $13.36 million during the session. Fidelity’s FBTC posted an outflow of almost $36 million. ARK’s ARKB reported an outflow of $27.4 million.

On the other hand, leveraged traders remain positioned for downside. They are leaning against the rally. When prices rise against a crowded short trade, the unwind can accelerate quickly. As losses mount, short sellers are forced to buy back positions. This adds fuel to the rally in a cascading effect. The longer this standoff continues, the more volatility will be seen in the market.

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