Bitcoin rallies above $51,000 as a significant amount of short positions get liquidated
Quick Take
- Bitcoin’s rise above $51,000 caused the liquidation of almost $70 million in short positions.
- In the past 24 hours, over $130 million in total cryptocurrency short positions were liquidated on centralized exchanges.
Over $130 million in cryptocurrency short positions were liquidated in the past 24 hours on centralized cryptocurrency exchanges, according to Coinglass data.
The bitcoin market experienced increased volatility over the past day, with the price spiking above the $51,000 mark. This price action caused the wipeout of over $93 million in bitcoin positions — with almost $70 million being shorts.
Bitcoin 
BTC
+0.14%
's value has appreciated by over 21% since the beginning of February, with the foremost cryptocurrency's dominance now standing at 50%, compared to 16.3% for ether.
On Wednesday, the entire cryptocurrency market capitalization rebounded back above $2 trillion — a high not seen since April 2022. Bitcoin increased by almost 3% in the past 24 hours, trading for $51,521 at 5:40 a.m. ET, according to The Block's Prices Page.
The price of bitcoin has increased by almost 3% in the past 24 hours. Image: The Block.
Crypto market defies risk-off macro conditions
The cryptocurrency market is buoyant compared to a decline in U.S. equities over the past 24 hours. On Tuesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 412 points or 1.1%, and the S&P 500 was down 1.1% after the release of a inflation report for January in the United States. The report from the U.S. Labor Department showed that the consumer price index rose 0.3% from December to January — up from a 0.2% increase the previous month.
RELATED INDICES
Inflation has not cooled as much as markets were positioned for, reinforcing the overall expectation that the Federal Reserve will not cut rates in March. Markets have now priced in a 91.5% chance of a rate pause next month — a notable shift from the consensus one month ago that there would be a rate cut in March.
According to the CME FedWatch tool, interest rate traders see a 34% possibility of a rate cut at May's Federal Open Market Committee meeting but also a significant 63.3% chance of another rate pause.
The CME FedWatch tool shows increased expectation of rate cut at the May FOMC meeting. Image: CME FedWatch.
Disclaimer: The Block is an independent media outlet that delivers news, research, and data. As of November 2023, Foresight Ventures is a majority investor of The Block. Foresight Ventures invests in other companies in the crypto space. Crypto exchange Bitget is an anchor LP for Foresight Ventures. The Block continues to operate independently to deliver objective, impactful, and timely information about the crypto industry. Here are our current financial disclosures.
© 2023 The Block. All Rights Reserved. This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.
