One year on: What did the $19 billion liquidation day teach us?
A year ago, on October 11, the crypto market saw the largest single-day liquidation in history: over $19 billion in high-risk positions vanished in a single day. The trigger was Trump’s announcement of additional tariffs on China. $BTC fell 4% in a day, and $ETH dropped 8.6%—and, along the way, the myth of “October always goes up” came to an end. It was the first October to close down since 2018.
Ironically, history rhymed this same weekend a year later: $1.19 billion in liquidations across the market, with ETH’s $356 million surpassing BTC’s $298 million. Adjusted for market cap, ETH’s liquidation intensity was six times BTC’s.
A year has passed, and BTC has fallen from its all-time high of $126,000 to $82,000. The price has changed, but the script hasn’t: news sparks the fire, leverage fans the flames, and spot buyers are nowhere to be seen. Every “10/11” is a forced checkup—measuring the blood pressure of leverage.
Liquidations themselves aren’t the disease; the real problem is when nobody steps in to buy afterward. BTC at 82k is the current dividing line between bulls and bears. If it holds, the rebound could continue; if it breaks on heavy volume, the next level to watch is $80k.
A year ago, on October 11, the crypto market saw the largest single-day liquidation in history: over $19 billion in high-risk positions vanished in a single day. The trigger was Trump’s announcement of additional tariffs on China. $BTC fell 4% in a day, and $ETH dropped 8.6%—and, along the way, the myth of “October always goes up” came to an end. It was the first October to close down since 2018.
Ironically, history rhymed this same weekend a year later: $1.19 billion in liquidations across the market, with ETH’s $356 million surpassing BTC’s $298 million. Adjusted for market cap, ETH’s liquidation intensity was six times BTC’s.
A year has passed, and BTC has fallen from its all-time high of $126,000 to $82,000. The price has changed, but the script hasn’t: news sparks the fire, leverage fans the flames, and spot buyers are nowhere to be seen. Every “10/11” is a forced checkup—measuring the blood pressure of leverage.
Liquidations themselves aren’t the disease; the real problem is when nobody steps in to buy afterward. BTC at 82k is the current dividing line between bulls and bears. If it holds, the rebound could continue; if it breaks on heavy volume, the next level to watch is $80k.