Bitcoin (BTC) at $8,000, now at $7,000, then at $6,400, shortly at $5,600 before taking a hike up back to $6,330 USD as at the time of writing. The decreasing liquidity levels caused by the COVID-19 and Saudi-Russia oil tensions seem to be impacting the top crypto negatively as BTC experienced its largest daily drop in over a year.
Bitcoin witnessed one of its most volatile days
BTC/USD dipped to levels last seen in April 2019, as the price touched $5,600 on Thursday, 12, 2019, as the crypto world finally faced the crunch of the global turmoil. In one of the worst hourly candles recorded for BTC’s price, at 10.00 AM GMT, a single candle has plummeted by $1,800 USD, leading to one of the worst selloffs in the markets short history.
Currently trading at $6,333 USD, BTC is dangerously looking at hitting the psychological support level at $5,000 USD in the coming days.
A record number of BITMEX liquidations in an hour
On the hour that BTC set its way to lower key support levels, the largest crypto futures exchange, BitMEX recorded its third daily largest liquidation. As BTC struggled to keep its level above, $8,000, the market turned full bearish leading to a market-wide bloodbath – in tandem with the rest of the global asset market.
3rd biggest daily liquidations the last 2 years on BitMEX pic.twitter.com/rQcOmt6BUV
— Unfolded (@cryptounfolded) March 12, 2020
BitMEX liquidated over 825 long positions on their XBT contract representing a total value of $782,083, 000 USD in a day – its third highest liquidations yet. In the brutal hour of reckoning, over $773 million worth of XBT were liquidated on the platform.
Bitfinex margin traders were not also spared as 1772 contracts were liquidated on the platform – with a total of 7,456 BTC long positions liquidated.
With the COVID-19 spreading fast, assets across the globe from oil, stocks and now cryptocurrencies have suffered heavily setting record lows in returns. Bitcoin’s subsequent fall in price continues to prove its weakness in becoming a store of value for an ailing world economy.
