$260M of Short Positions Liquidated as Bitcoin (BTC) Crosses $26K

Bitcoin, the flagship cryptocurrency, has soared past the much-coveted $26,000 level to the great delight of bulls.

Earlier today, it peaked at $26,553 on the Bitstamp exchange. This marks a year-to-date high for the world’s largest cryptocurrency.

Based on data provided by the crypto analytics platform Coinglass, crypto bears have had a rough day with a significant number of liquidations over the past 24 hours, totaling $314.24 million.

The majority of these liquidations were on the short side, with 83.01% of the liquidations being short positions.

Binance, the world’s largest exchange by reported trading volumes, had the highest number of liquidations at $99.92 million, with 77.38% of those being shorts. OKX had the second-highest number of liquidations at $76.98 million, with 89.62% of those being shorts.

The cryptocurrency’s resurgence comes as the United States is experiencing a banking crisis. The collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and the seizure of Signature Bank caused widespread market panic about wider contagion.

Bitcoin has been seen as a safe haven asset in times of financial turmoil, and the recent banking crisis has fueled its price surge.

The cryptocurrency is now changing hands above the $26,000 mark for the first time since July 2022.