Bitcoin Tumbles to Four-Month Low as Leveraged Bets Face Mass Liquidations

Bitcoin’s Sell-Off Shows How Leverage Can Deepen a Crypto Rout

A break below a key technical level met heavy long-position liquidations, while fund outflows and wider risk aversion added to pressure on digital assets.

A technical break accelerated the decline

Bitcoin dropped 5.7% in the US on Saturday before falling a further 3.6% in Asia on Sunday to $62,112, its lowest since July 14. Ether, the second-largest token, fell 8% in the US session and then another 3.4% to $1,711, its weakest since July 8.

The move followed Bitcoin’s break below its 200-day moving average, which GSR co-founder Rich Rosenblum placed at about $73,000. He said the breach prompted liquidations and the development of new short positions. A technical threshold can become more than a chart marker when traders have borrowed to build positions: a sharp fall can trigger automatic closures, adding selling pressure and pushing prices lower still.

Liquidations reveal the market’s leverage risk

The scale of forced selling was significant. On Friday, Bitcoin’s slide led to roughly $1.3 billion of long crypto positions being liquidated over 24 hours, with Bitcoin accounting for most of the total. In the 24 hours through 9 a.m. Sunday in Singapore, tracked exchanges recorded about $2 billion in crypto liquidations: $774 million in Bitcoin and $488 million in Ether. Long positions made up the vast majority.

Large liquidation events—defined in the source as more than $500 million of Bitcoin positions wiped out over 24 hours—are becoming a recurring feature. These figures show how quickly a crowded bullish trade can reverse. They do not, by themselves, establish that the selling has run its course: renewed volatility could prompt further position closures, while a reduction in leverage could also lessen one source of selling pressure.

Fund outflows and macro pressures add to the strain

Bitcoin has fallen about 25% since Oct. 21, though it remains above its year low of $57,742, reached on July 1. The decline has coincided with expectations of higher interest rates, an AI-related risk-off mood and continued fallout from the recent $6 billion Binance hack. These factors offer a broader explanation for weakness beyond the technical break, but the source does not establish how much each contributed.

Flows have also turned into a headwind: US-listed spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded almost $3 billion in net outflows from Oct. 30 through Nov. 13. DACM executive chairman Richard Galvin suggested that anticipation of Anthropic’s initial public offering may be drawing capital away from crypto. He compared the price pattern with the period around SpaceX IPO pricing earlier in the year and said crypto appeared to be a short-term funding source, particularly for retail investors. That is one market participant’s interpretation, rather than proof that IPO demand caused the sell-off.

Key Highlights

• Bitcoin reached $62,112, its lowest level since July 14, after breaking below a roughly $73,000 200-day moving average.
• Bitcoin has declined about 25% since Oct. 21; its stated year low is $57,742.
• About $2 billion in crypto positions were liquidated in the 24 hours through 9 a.m. Sunday in Singapore, mostly long bets.
• US-listed spot Bitcoin ETFs saw almost $3 billion in net outflows from Oct. 30 through Nov. 13.
• Higher-rate expectations, risk aversion and market-specific concerns are among the pressures cited alongside forced selling.

Investor Note: The sharp fall highlights the risks of leverage and the potential for market flows and sentiment to reinforce price moves. Investors should distinguish forced liquidations from evidence of a lasting change in demand, and account for the possibility of further volatility rather than treating a technical level or liquidation total as a reliable signal of a bottom.