As the festive season kicked off, Bitcoin, the world’s largest cryptocurrency, soared above $99,000 on Christmas Day, buoyed by a surge of optimism among investors. According to CryptoSlate’s data, the digital coin had jumped by over 5% in the previous 24 hours, recovering from a weekly low of $92,973.
However, the rally proved to be short-lived, with Bitcoin’s price falling back to around $98,000 shortly after. This upswing in prices was mirrored across the broader cryptocurrency market, with Ethereum, XRP, and Solana each experiencing gains of over 4%. These developments contributed to a 3.5% increase in the global cryptocurrency market cap, which stood at $3.44 trillion at the time of writing.
Despite these positive movements, the market remained highly volatile, with over $290 million worth of cryptocurrencies being liquidated within the past 24 hours. CoinGlass reported that this massive figure represented losses incurred by 105,883 traders, with short positions accounting for the majority of these losses at $162 million.
Long positions, which are typically taken when investors expect prices to rise further, also suffered significant losses, totaling $128 million. Among the various cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin traders were hit hardest by the liquidations, losing a staggering $78 million. This was followed by Ethereum traders, who saw $51 million in liquidations.
The largest individual liquidation event occurred on Okx, involving a $6.9 million ETH-USDT transaction. Analysts attributed this volatility to the holiday season, during which markets tend to be thin and susceptible to sudden swings. Overall, the latest developments in the cryptocurrency market highlight both the potential for significant gains and the risks associated with trading in this highly speculative asset class.
As always, investors are advised to exercise caution and conduct thorough research before making any investment decisions.
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