Bitcoin approached $72,000 in a second day of upside as crypto short liquidations passed $3.1 billion.
Bitcoin (BTC) and altcoins are breaking records as short position liquidations pass $3 billion over two days.
Two-day crypto short liquidations hit $3.1 billion
Data from CoinGlass shows ongoing crypto short liquidations at $3.1 billion for Aug. 19-20. Thursday’s tally was largest single-day wipeout of shorts ever recorded.
Crypto liquidations history (screenshot). Source: CoinGlass
On Wednesday, BTC/USD led the charge by reacting to a liquidity intervention by the US Treasury with a price spike to the highest levels seen since the start of June. At the time of writing, upside continues, with the pair reaching local highs of $71,992 on Bitstamp, per data from TradingView.
BTC/USD one-day chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView
CoinGlass shows Bitcoin accounting for just over half of the total short liquidations at $1.65 billion.
The numbers do not represent the largest crypto liquidation event if long positions are included. It is dwarfed by the $20 billion long liquidation cascade that followed Bitcoin’s reversal from the most recent all-time high of $126,200 in October 2025.
In US dollar terms, data from CoinMarketCap puts Thursday’s total liquidations in seventh place historically, calculating the day’s long and short liquidations as $3.25 billion.
Bitcoin speculators take profit as cost basis returns
Bitcoin investors, meanwhile, capitalized on positions that were previously held at an unrealized loss.
Source
This article is syndicated for educational reading. For the latest updates, visit the original publisher.
Read on cointelegraph.com
