A late-night Twitter dispute between U.S. President Donald Trump and tech billionaire Elon Musk sparked fresh uncertainty in global markets. The clash caused major cryptocurrencies to tumble sharply, wiping out close to $1 billion in leveraged trading positions.
Bitcoin (BTC) fell below $101,000 overnight but later showed a slight rebound. Dogecoin (DOGE) and Cardano (ADA) were hit hardest, each dropping more than 6% within 24 hours. The CoinDesk 20 Index, which tracks the largest cryptocurrencies, declined by over 5%.
Nearly $1 Billion in Liquidations Reported, Mostly on Long Positions
Data from CoinGlass revealed that traders faced $988 million in liquidations, with $888 million coming from long positions. This means many traders betting on price increases lost their holdings completely.
Exchanges like Bybit and Binance experienced the biggest losses. Bybit alone saw nearly $354 million in liquidations.
Bitcoin and Ethereum Led the Liquidations
The largest liquidations were for top tokens. Bitcoin topped the list with over $342 million liquidated in 24 hours, followed by Ethereum (ETH) with $286 million. This reflects a broad sell-off across the crypto market.
Other altcoins also faced heavy liquidations: Solana’s SOL lost $51 million, Dogecoin $27 million, and Ripple’s XRP saw $23 million wiped out. Traders using high leverage on memecoins such as 1000PEPE contributed to heightened market volatility and rapid sell-offs.
Understanding Liquidations and Market Impact
Liquidations occur when a trader’s leveraged position is forcibly closed because they fail to meet margin requirements. This happens when the asset price moves against the trader’s bet, resulting in loss of most or all of their initial investment.
Such widespread liquidations often signal extreme market stress. When market sentiment becomes too one-sided, a reversal in prices may soon follow.
Trump-Musk Twitter Feud Fuels Market Turmoil
The sell-off followed Trump calling Musk “crazy” and threatening to end government contracts with Musk’s companies. Musk responded by linking Trump to controversial documents related to Jeffrey Epstein.
This public conflict overshadowed recent positive trends in cryptocurrency prices and intensified profit-taking earlier in the week, adding to market instability.
