CoinDesk
The Federal Reserve's rate decision triggered a 24-hour crypto-derivatives bloodbath despite essentially flat underlying prices. About $286 million in leveraged positions were liquidated across 87,294 traders, per CoinGlass, while Bitcoin closed roughly unchanged around $63,900 and Ether slipped only modestly to $1,900. Longs absorbed $186 million of the damage and shorts $100 million, the signature of a market that swung hard in both directions and settled back where it started.
Why it matters
A 2% range is normally a quiet session, not a $286 million one. Roughly $57 million in Bitcoin positions were cleared, almost evenly split between longs and shorts, while Ether recorded the largest single-asset wipeout at $58 million, tilted toward longs as price oscillated between $1,850 and $1,920. The bulk of the damage landed in the 12 hours around the Fed statement, with $188 million liquidated in that window and longs carrying $130 million. The single largest liquidation was a $2.9 million Bitcoin position on Binance.
Market impact
The more unusual wreckage was in equity perpetuals. Roughly $19 million in SanDisk positions were cleared on crypto derivatives venues, plus $10 million in Micron, $7 million in SK Hynix and $7 million in SOXL, a leveraged semiconductor ETF. Almost all of it was long. Micron's liquidations split roughly seven to one in favor of longs ($9M against $1M), and SanDisk's ran two to one. Traders were using crypto rails to bet on the AI memory trade, and they were positioned that way heading into the sharpest chip selloff of the year.
The timing turned out unfortunate. SK Hynix fell 17% on Wednesday after reporting profit up 557%, short of expectations. It is the second time this week that equity perpetuals have caused real losses: on Monday, a thin Korean pre-market venue dropped Trade.xyz's SK Hynix contract 19% and triggered $60 million in liquidations the exchange has since agreed to reimburse.
Frequently asked questions
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How much was liquidated across crypto derivatives in this 24-hour window?
About $286 million in leveraged positions were liquidated across 87,294 traders over 24 hours, according to CoinGlass, with longs absorbing $186 million and shorts $100 million.
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Why did liquidations spike even though Bitcoin and Ether prices barely moved?
The Federal Reserve rate decision triggered a whipsaw inside a tight ~2% range. Bitcoin oscillated between $63,247 and $64,660 while Ether ranged $1,850 to $1,920, enough to clear leveraged positions stacked on either side without producing a directional move.
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How much of the damage was concentrated around the Fed rate decision?
Roughly $188 million of the 24-hour liquidations landed in the 12 hours around the Fed statement, with longs carrying $130 million of that total.
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What happened with equity perpetuals on crypto exchanges?
Crypto venues saw roughly $19M in SanDisk, $10M in Micron, $7M in SK Hynix and $7M in SOXL positions liquidated, almost entirely on the long side, as leveraged bets on the AI memory trade got caught in the sharpest chip selloff of the year.
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Has this equity-derivatives blowup happened before this week?
Yes. On Monday, a thin Korean pre-market venue dropped Trade.xyz's SK Hynix contract 19% and triggered about $60 million in liquidations, which the exchange has since agreed to reimburse.
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