Bitcoin (BTC) jumped above the $79,000 mark for the first time in history during an unusual weekend pump that liquidated $280 million in bearish crypto trades.
BTC rose 4%, extending its seven-day gain to over 16%, following a week that saw Republican Donald Trump elect US president and the Federal Reserve cut rates by 25 basis points – with both events widely viewed as bullish by traders .
Weekend pumps are generally considered bullish in the crypto market because trading volumes typically decline during the weekend, when many institutional investors and professional traders are less active.
Lower liquidity can lead to more volatile price movements, while even smaller trades can cause significant price changes.
However, a significant price increase last Saturday and Sunday could indicate that retail investors are driving market activity. This is a bullish sign as it indicates widespread interest and participation from smaller investors, not just institutional players.
Profit-taking among bitcoin traders remains small compared to previous euphoric periods, indicating that the current rally still has plenty of room to continue. CoinDesk analysis shows.
Meanwhile, bearish crypto bets racked up more than $280 million in losses – an unusually high figure for the weekend – liquidating $103 million in bitcoin shorts and $70 million in ether short bets. Shorts are bets at higher prices.
DOGE and Solana’s SOL saw more than $25 million in liquidated traders, indicating greater participation in futures in tokens beyond BTC and ETH.
A liquidation occurs when an exchange forcibly closes a trader’s leveraged position because the trader is unable to meet margin requirements. Large-scale liquidations can indicate market extremes, such as panic selling or buying.
A cascade of liquidations could signal a turning point in the market, where a price reversal could be imminent due to an overreaction in market sentiment.
