The crypto futures market just had its most brutal week in years. Over $5.7 billion in long positions were liquidated across a seven-day stretch, according to CoinGlass data, as traders who bet on rising prices found themselves on the wrong side of a vicious selloff.
Total leveraged liquidations, including shorts, reached nearly $7 billion. The carnage coincided with roughly $390 billion evaporating from the total crypto market cap, a figure that puts this week in rare and uncomfortable company.
The numbers behind the bloodbath
Long positions accounted for over 80% of total liquidations, meaning the overwhelming majority of pain was felt by traders who were positioned for continued gains.
Bitcoin and Ether both posted their worst weekly performance since the FTX collapse in November 2022. The FTX implosion was an existential crisis for crypto confidence. This week’s drawdown, while different in cause, matched it in the speed and severity of price destruction.
