What caused crypto liquidations to reach nearly $658 million?

The crypto market sold off as investors reacted to rising geopolitical tensions involving the US and Iran. Falling prices triggered automatic liquidations of leveraged trading positions across major exchanges.

What are crypto liquidations?

Liquidations occur when leveraged traders no longer have enough collateral to maintain open positions. Exchanges automatically close those trades to prevent further losses once margin requirements are breached.

Why were long traders hit harder than short traders?

Most traders had positioned for prices to continue rising, creating heavy exposure on the bullish side of the market. When crypto prices fell, long positions were forced to close rapidly, causing roughly $584 million in long liquidations.

Which cryptocurrency saw the largest liquidations?

Ethereum recorded the largest liquidation volume at approximately $256 million. Bitcoin followed with around $181 million in liquidated positions.

Why did Bitcoin fall below $77,000?

Bitcoin weakened alongside broader risk assets as traders reduced exposure during heightened geopolitical uncertainty. Concerns about potential US military action contributed to risk-off sentiment across financial markets.

How did Solana perform during the sell-off?

Solana fell more than 11% over the past week, making it one of the weaker-performing major cryptocurrencies during the broader market decline.

What was the largest single liquidation during the sell-off?

The largest reported liquidation occurred on Bitget, where an ETH/USDT perpetual futures position worth roughly $28.49 million was closed.

Why do geopolitical tensions affect crypto markets?

Geopolitical risks can reduce investor appetite for speculative assets such as cryptocurrencies. During periods of uncertainty, traders often move capital into safer or more defensive assets.

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Crypto long liquidations reach $584M amid market drop

Written by Heidi Cuthbert Published May. 18 2026Last Updated May. 18 2026

Crypto liquidations climbed to approximately $657.9 million during the past 24 hours as digital asset prices moved lower across the broader market.

Data from Coinglass showed that long positions accounted for roughly $584.38 million of total liquidations, while short positions represented about $73.52 million as bullish leveraged traders absorbed most of the losses.

Ethereum recorded the largest liquidation volume among major assets, with approximately $256.83 million in positions erased, while Bitcoin saw roughly $180.89 million liquidated.

The single largest liquidation reportedly occurred on Bitget, where an ETH/USDT perpetual contract worth around $28.49 million was closed.

The broader crypto market weakened alongside increasing geopolitical tensions after Donald Trump warned that the US could consider military options involving Iran if negotiations deteriorate further.

Bitcoin fell below $77,000 during the sell-off, while Ethereum dropped beneath $2,120 and Solana declined more than 11% over the past week.

Markets continue monitoring geopolitical developments and broader macroeconomic conditions as leveraged crypto positions remain vulnerable to further volatility.

At the time of reporting, Ethereum price was $2,121.51.