Crypto Liquidations Savage Long Positions Over Weekend - Bull Trap or Market Reset?

Crypto markets just delivered a brutal reminder: leverage cuts both ways. Long positions got absolutely hammered over the weekend as liquidations swept through major exchanges.

The Bloodbath Breakdown

Margin calls triggered cascading sell-offs across perpetual futures markets. Traders watching their positions evaporate learned the hard way that crypto doesn't care about your stop losses.

Market Mechanics Gone Wild

Liquidation engines worked overtime as funding rates flipped negative. The system designed to protect leverage traders instead amplified the pain—typical finance genius at work.

Silver Linings Playbook

For savvy accumulators? This flushout creates prime entry points. Nothing resets overleveraged markets like a good old-fashioned margin call massacre.

Remember: in crypto, sometimes the best trade is surviving to trade another day. The market's memory is short—but the lessons from forced liquidations tend to stick around.

The weekend liquidations spilled over into the new week, at one point reaching $1B in total liquidations within an hour. The return of active trading in the new week did not reverse the weekend trend, but deepened the slide for most assets. 

Liquidations usually affect blue-chip tokens and larger projects, where traders are strategically positioned on the derivative markets. This time around, the liquidation event affected a larger selection of tokens, liquidating $109.7M in smaller assets. 

Other assets that showed strength in the past weeks and built up long liquidity have also faced notable liquidations. Those include the recently expanding ASTER, as well as WLFI, PUMP, and others. Even BNB saw a limited amount of long liquidations, after climbing to a peak above $1,077.

Liquidations ended the altcoin season 

The past week saw a series of altcoin and token rallies, extending the altcoin season period. However, historically altcoin seasons are short, often lasting around two weeks. 

After the most recent price slide, the altcoin season index slid from its peak of 100 points achieved just days ago, and turned back to 67 points. 

The altcoin season rally continued for around a month, though peak index values lasted only a few days. During that period, well-established coins reached new valuation levels, while smaller assets went through short-lived pumps. 

The current level of the index suggests altcoin season is over for now, though it is not fully BTC season. BTC dominance recovered to 56.2%, while ETH dominance slid to 12.8%. Since 2024, altcoins had three periods of heated expansion, with the latest weeks becoming the longest hot altcoin season. 

ETH leads liquidations for the past day

ETH liquidations continued in the new week, as the token lost its previous tiers of stability. ETH dipped to $4,139.61, wiping out up to $465M for the day. 

Long liquidations continued on Monday, at one point erasing over $1B for all assets, as BTC dipped under $113,000. 

Smaller altcoins extended their liquidations to over $263M, shaking out other optimistic traders. The recent event showed the crypto market was still capable of a liquidation cascade, and the initial wipeout was not complete. The market reversal may come as soon as all liquidatable positions are closed or cleared. 

Previous liquidity accumulation for ETH suggested a possible dip to the $3,900 level in the case of a liquidation cascade. ETH open interest reverted to $27B, down from its recent level of around $30B. 

ETH is seen as one of the indicators for an altcoin market. Currently, DeFi is not as threatened by liquidations, as most loans remain conservative, and significant liquidation levels start under $1,700.

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