Bitcoin and the broader cryptocurrency market extended their slide on Thursday, tumbling as elevated oil prices and macroeconomic pressures spooked investors. The leading digital asset dropped nearly 3% to around $68,900, dragging the total market cap below the $2.5 trillion mark.
However, Bitcoin’s decline was more limited than the sharper drops seen in Gold and silver prices. Consequently, this pullback triggered significant liquidations across leveraged crypto positions, with CoinGlass data showing a total of $460 million over the past day.
Long bets accounted for the majority of these liquidations, losing around $360 million. Specifically, bets on Bitcoin lost approximately $163 million, while those on Ethereum amounted to $121 million. Ethereum was the only top-10 cryptocurrency to post a larger percentage loss than Bitcoin, falling over 3% to around $2,100.
Meanwhile, rising crude oil prices remained a key driver of market anxiety following Iran’s strikes in the Persian Gulf. Retail sentiment around the United States Oil Fund (USO) flipped to ‘bearish’ on Stocktwits as its price edged higher. The recent market pressure began with hotter-than-expected wholesale inflation data on Wednesday.
Consequently, hawkish comments from the Federal Reserve on keeping interest rates steady added further weight to asset prices. On social platforms, some traders hoped Bitcoin’s price would drop below $60,000 to buy at a discount. Others noted the cryptocurrency had fallen from nearly $76,000 to under $69,000 in just two days.
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