Bitcoin’s sharp pullback on Monday led to the largest single liquidation recorded over the past 24 hours, as prices reversed weekend gains and market sentiment deteriorated to extreme levels.
A $61.5 million leveraged long position was forcibly closed on HTX amid the downturn, making it the biggest individual liquidation during the period, according to data from CoinGlass. The wipeout unfolded as BTC tumbled from Saturday’s high near $68,600 to roughly $64,400, swiftly erasing its short-lived rally. CoinDesk has contacted HTX for comment.
The scale of the position indicates it was likely held by a large whale or institutional participant rather than a retail trader using modest leverage. In total, $467.64 million in positions were liquidated across 137,422 traders over the same timeframe, CoinGlass data shows. Long positions made up $434 million — about 93% of the total — highlighting how skewed the market had become toward bullish bets before liquidity thinned and prices rolled over.
Bitcoin futures alone accounted for $213.62 million in forced liquidations. Ether (ETH) followed with $113.89 million, while solana (SOL) saw $19.89 million wiped out. Hyperliquid’s HYPE token registered $10.72 million in liquidations, a significant figure for an asset that typically does not rank among the top contracts by volume.
Sentiment sinks deeper into fear
The broader selloff pushed Alternative.me’s Crypto Fear and Greed Index down to 5 out of 100 — firmly in “extreme fear” territory. Since the index launched in 2018, such a low reading has only been recorded in August 2019, June 2022, and earlier this month during bitcoin’s drop toward $60,000.
On-chain analytics from Glassnode reinforce the cautious outlook. The firm reported that the seven-day moving average of net realized losses among short-term bitcoin holders remains close to $500 million per day, suggesting that recent buyers are still capitulating despite the earlier February flush.
“While the intensity has cooled, the broader regime still signals a market under pressure,” Glassnode noted, describing ongoing losses among participants during what appears to be a base-building phase.
Bitcoin now trades roughly 48% below its October all-time high of $126,000 and around 5.5% beneath its 2021 peak near $69,000. Although the latest selloff has purged significant leverage from the system, the broader dynamic remains unchanged: traders continue attempting to buy dips, only to be caught offside as rallies lose momentum and downside pressure resumes.
