Bitcoin's push past $81,000 forced $547 million in leveraged crypto positions to close within 24 hours, with short sellers absorbing most of the losses. The move follows the Federal Reserve's first rate hike since 2023, a stalled CLARITY Act vote in the Senate, and a new CFTC push to write crypto market rules.
Traders betting against Bitcoin got forced out as the price crossed $81,000 on Friday, triggering $547 million in leveraged crypto liquidations over the past 24 hours, according to CoinGlass data cited by The Daily Hodl.
Short positions made up $469.19 million of that total, against just $57.10 million in long liquidations. Bitcoin led the wipeout with about $243.54 million liquidated, followed by Ethereum at about $95.66 million and Solana at about $36.29 million.
More than 107,000 traders were forced out of their positions. The largest single close was an $8.53 million Bitcoin position on Hyperliquid. Bitcoin traded near $81,030 at time of publishing.
Fed Hike and Failed CLARITY Vote Don't Slow the Rally
Two days earlier, the Federal Reserve raised rates for the first time since 2023, and three days earlier the Senate failed to advance the CLARITY Act. Neither shock stopped the rebound: Bitcoin had traded at $80,914 on Binance at 18:07 UTC, up 5.9% on the day, as Ethereum, XRP and Dogecoin climbed 6% to 7%.
CFTC Files Crypto Rules as ETF Inflows Continue
Regulators moved in parallel. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission submitted a crypto market rules proposal to the White House on September 17, two days after the Senate's rejection of the CLARITY Act. That same day, spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded $159 million in net inflows, with BlackRock's IBIT the only fund reporting positive flows in that session.
Total crypto market capitalization rose 4.49% to $2.75 trillion within 24 hours, and the Fear and Greed Index climbed to 73, a reading that signals greed among traders. Forced closures of leveraged short positions added their own pressure, buying back into the rally as Bitcoin cleared nearby resistance.
Sources: The Daily Hodl, Finance Magnates, CoinGape
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