Hot US inflation triggered liquidations because it made markets price in higher-for-longer US interest rates. That usually pressures risk assets, including crypto, as Treasury yields and the dollar rise.

Crypto’s drop was amplified by leverage: many traders were positioned long in perpetual futures. As prices fell, margin levels breached liquidation thresholds, forcing exchanges to close positions. Those forced sales added more selling pressure, creating a cascade that pushed total liquidations toward $942M.

In short: hot inflation → tighter-rate expectations → risk-off selling → leveraged long liquidations.

The above is market analysis and does not constitute investment advice.