The digital asset sector was met with a harrowing reality Tuesday morning, as Bitcoin liquidations have surpassed the $500 million market amid a down crypto market. Indeed, the leading cryptocurrency fell drastically amid ongoing geopolitical tensions arising in the Middle East.
The development has certainly been difficult for traders who expected a much different start to October. There had been rumblings that BTC would return to its $70,000 yearly highs with ‘Uptober‘ nearing. Yet, those kinds of levels are certainly in jeopardy amid the current state of the market.
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BTC Liquidations Reach $500 Million as October Gets Off to Horrid Start
After struggling throughout the summer months, fall was meant to get Bitcoin back on track. The asset got off to a hot start in 2024. January saw it become the first crypto-based ETF in the United States. Just three months later, it would reach a record price of $73,000. Throughout August and September, it was unable to compete with those highs.
Although the market had put tremendous hope in October, that has yet to come to fruition. In fact, the last 24 hours have seen the leading crypto fall more than 4.2%, according to CoinMarketCap. That decline is a deviation from its 4% increase in the last 30 days, leading it to its current price just below $60,000.
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However, Tuesday started with a stark downturn for crypto traders. Bitcoin liquidations had surpassed the $500 million mark, hindering the crypto market, and reaching heights of $526 million in the last 24 hours. According to data from CoinGlass, long positions had accounted for $453 million, while short positions represented $73 million of those liquidations.
Traders can take solace in the opinion of many experts who claim the decline is not expected to be prolonged. The asset is still set to benefit from various macroeconomic factors. However, the aforementioned geopolitical tensions have led to increased uncertainty. That is undeniably reflected in Bitcoin’s falling price.