Bitcoin tumbles as whale sells 3,500 BTC, $310 million liquidated in 24 hours Bitcoin tumbles as whale sells 3,500 BTC, $310 million liquidated in 24 hours
Market analysts warned that the selling actions could push Bitcoin price to the low $50,000s.
2 min read
Updated: Jul. 4, 2024 at 10:44 am UTC
Cover art/illustration via CryptoSlate. Image includes combined content which may include AI-generated content.
Bitcoin continues to experience significant volatility, extending a downward trend that began last month.
According to CryptoSlate’s data, Bitcoin’s price has dropped approximately 6% in the past 24 hours, breaking the $58,000 mark to fall to as low as $56,900.
Market observers warned that if the heavy selling action continues, this decline could be a precursor to a decline in the flagship digital asset’s price to the low $50,000s. Earlier today, blockchain analyst Lookonchain identified a whale that sold 3,500 BTC for $206 million in five hours through the Binance exchange.
Markus Thielen, founder of 10x Research, noted that buying activity has dwindled as selling pressures increase. He noted that Bitcoin broke crucial technical and psychological levels at $60,000, a key point for miners and Spot ETF buyers. Notably, this marks the bottom of its three-month trading range.
Thielen added:
“Price declines could accelerate as support gets broken and sellers scramble to find liquidity. Only ill-informed traders are willing to buy here. Breaking this support could cause a sharp decline to the low $50,000s.”
Some observers attribute the price drop to low market liquidity and concerns over the impending Mt. Gox BTC payout, which will distribute about $9 billion worth of Bitcoin to creditors. Further, crypto exchange BloFin also issued a research note warning of high downside risk for Bitcoin, mainly if an unexpected event occurs.
$310 million liquidated
Bitcoin’s decline has led to substantial losses for crypto traders speculating on market movements.
According to Coinglass data, over 110,000 traders lost about $310 million in the last 24 hours, most of which stemmed from long traders.
Bitcoin traders bore the brunt, incurring $94 million in lossesโ$82 million from long trades and $12 million from short trades. Ethereum was not far behind, with liquidations reaching around $72 million.
The largest single liquidation took place on HTX (formerly Huobi), involving a $10 million long position on the top crypto asset.
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Oluwapelumi Adejumo
Oluwapelumi values Bitcoin's potential. He imparts insights on a range of topics like DeFi, hacks, mining and culture, underlining transformative power.
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Liam 'Akiba' Wright
Also known as "Akiba," Liam is a reporter, editor and podcast producer at CryptoSlate. He believes that decentralized technology has the potential to make widespread positive change.
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Ethereum
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Ethereum is a decentralized, open-source blockchain platform that enables the creation of smart contracts and decentralized applications (DApps).
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The fastest-growing crypto exchange offers premium perpetual and futures trading services with over 320 USDT-M trading pairs, covering Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Solana (SOL), and various altcoins, along with up to 150X leverage.
Markus Thielen is currently the Head of Research & Strategy at Matrixport, ย a one-stop digital assets financial services platform where users can invest, trade, and leverage crypto assets.