🚀 Bitcoin (BTC) Smashes $118K All-Time High as Liquidations Wipe Out $1.13B – Bulls in Control

Bitcoin just rewrote the record books—again. The OG crypto surged past $118,000 today, leaving a trail of nine-figure liquidations in its wake. Here’s why this pump hits different.

The Domino Effect: Over $1.13 billion in leveraged positions got obliterated as BTC’s parabolic move caught shorts off guard. Exchanges resembled a battlefield—margin calls flashing red from Singapore to Chicago.

Institutional FOMO 2.0: With BlackRock’s spot ETF now holding more BTC than MicroStrategy, Wall Street’s latecomers are paying retail prices (plus their usual 2-and-20 fee buffet, naturally).

What’s Next? The $120K psychological barrier looms—but after today’s carnage, even crypto skeptics are quietly recalculating their ‘greater fool’ exit strategies.

TLDR

• Bitcoin reached a new all-time high of $118,000, triggering over $1.13 billion in position liquidations
• Short sellers bore the brunt with $1.01 billion liquidated, representing nearly 90% of all liquidations
• 237,000 traders were liquidated with the largest single loss being $88.5 million on HTX
• Bitcoin futures led liquidations at $590 million, followed by ethereum futures at $241 million
• Bitcoin is now in “price discovery” territory with institutional demand driving continued upward momentum

Bitcoin reached new all-time highs on Thursday, breaking past $118,000 according to multiple price feeds. The MOVE triggered the largest liquidation event of 2025 so far.

Over $1.13 billion in cryptocurrency positions were liquidated in 24 hours. Short sellers accounted for $1.01 billion of these losses, representing nearly 90% of all liquidated positions.

The liquidations affected approximately 237,000 traders across major exchanges. The single largest loss was an $88.5 million Bitcoin-USDT short position on HTX exchange.

$1.12 Billion shorts liquidated as Bitcoin $BTC hits a high of $118,100 and ethereum $ETH hits $3,030 👀 pic.twitter.com/rALLkIabIO

— Trader Edge (@Pro_Trader_Edge) July 11, 2025

Bitcoin futures dominated the liquidation data with $590 million in forced closures. Ethereum futures followed with $241 million in liquidations.

Bybit exchange absorbed the most damage with $461 million in total liquidations. Over 93% of Bybit’s liquidations were on the short side. Binance recorded $204 million in liquidations while HTX saw $193 million.

Exchange Impact and Market Mechanics

The liquidation pattern reveals how aggressively traders were betting against Bitcoin’s rally. Short liquidations occur when traders borrow capital to bet on falling prices but get forced out when markets move higher.

These events create reflexive buying pressure as positions are automatically closed. The forced buying often accelerates upward price momentum during rallies.

Open interest on Bitcoin-tracked futures increased by $2 billion in just four hours. The long-short ratio favored bullish positions at 52%, indicating rising bets on further price gains.

Bitcoin’s move higher came despite initial weakness following stronger-than-expected U.S. employment data. June non-farm payrolls increased by 147,000, well above the forecasted 110,000.

The employment data raised concerns about potential interest rate hikes. However, Bitcoin quickly recovered and continued climbing to fresh highs.

Institutional Demand Driving Price Discovery

Bitcoin is now trading in “price discovery” territory where technical resistance is mostly psychological. This occurs when assets break into uncharted price levels with limited historical reference points.

#BTC

Bitcoin has transitioned into Price Discovery Uptrend 2$BTC #Crypto #Bitcoin https://t.co/mad8LQlqmw pic.twitter.com/Qev6m3Ij0c

— Rekt Capital (@rektcapital) July 10, 2025

Cumulative flows into U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs have surpassed $50 billion according to fund data. July marked another strong month for institutional inflows into these products.

Corporate treasuries led by MicroStrategy, Tesla, and GameStop continue accumulating Bitcoin. This institutional demand provides support during price corrections and contributes to Bitcoin’s growing role in investment portfolios.

The combination of ETF demand and corporate buying has created a supply squeeze. Every dip below six figures has been quickly bought as liquidity dries up while traditional finance demand increases.

Other major cryptocurrencies also gained ground during Bitcoin’s rally. Ethereum rose approximately 3.2%, Solana climbed 2.7%, and Dogecoin increased 3%.

XRP gained 4.7% while Cardano posted a 6% increase. Litecoin rounded out the gains with a 2.8% move higher.

The broader market context supported risk assets across the board. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite posted record closes for the third time in four sessions.

Gold futures reached a historic high of $3,370 per ounce during the same session. The Federal Reserve’s cautious approach to monetary policy continues supporting risk asset performance.

Bitcoin’s open interest data suggests continued bullish positioning among futures traders. The long-short ratio remaining above 50% indicates traders expect further upside in the NEAR term.