Crypto Futures Liquidations Hit $112M as Extreme Fear Grips Market

VADODARA, January 10, 2026 — Forced liquidations in cryptocurrency perpetual futures markets totaled $112 million over the past 24 hours, with Bitcoin and Ethereum accounting for over 90% of the volume, according to data from Coinness. This daily crypto analysis reveals a market structure dominated by long-position squeezes, as the Crypto Fear & Greed Index plunges to 25/100, indicating Extreme Fear conditions.

Market Context & Background

Market structure suggests this liquidation event mirrors patterns observed during the 2021 correction, where leveraged long positions were systematically cleared during periods of high volatility. Similar to that cycle, current on-chain data indicates a liquidity grab targeting overextended retail traders, with Bitcoin's dominance squeezing altcoin liquidity. Historical cycles show that such events often precede short-term capitulation before potential reversals, as seen in Q4 2022 when futures liquidations exceeded $200 million daily. Related developments include recent US Bitcoin ETF outflows of $252 million and an Altcoin Season Index drop to 40, both exacerbating market stress.

What Happened?

According to the Coinness report, Bitcoin led with $59.47 million in liquidations, of which 59.85% were long positions. Ethereum followed with $41.46 million, with longs comprising 63.45%. Zcash recorded $11.11 million, with an extreme 81.39% long bias. These figures, sourced from exchange APIs and aggregated by Coinness, highlight a asymmetric unwind favoring bearish pressure. The concentration in perpetual futures—a derivative product with no expiry—points to margin calls triggered by price declines below critical liquidation thresholds, as detailed in the original liquidation data report.

Technical Analysis & Price Action

Bitcoin's current price of $90,398 represents a -0.63% 24-hour decline, testing the $90,000 psychological support. Market structure suggests a Fair Value Gap (FVG) between $92,000 and $94,000 that may act as resistance. The Relative Strength Index (RSI) on 4-hour charts is at 42, indicating neutral momentum with bearish bias. Ethereum's price action shows similar stress, with liquidations clustering around its $2,500 support zone. Volume profile analysis reveals low liquidity at current levels, increasing slippage risk. Bullish Invalidation for Bitcoin is set at $88,500—a break below would invalidate the current consolidation. Bearish Invalidation rests at $93,500, above which a short squeeze could unfold.

By The Numbers

Why It Matters

Institutional impact centers on risk management, as large liquidations can trigger cascading margin calls across leveraged products, similar to the March 2020 flash crash. Retail impact is more acute, with forced exits eroding capital and amplifying fear-driven selling. This event matters for the 5-year horizon because it tests the resilience of crypto's post-merge issuance model and EIP-4844 scalability upgrades, which aim to reduce volatility. According to the Federal Reserve's financial stability reports, excessive leverage in crypto derivatives poses systemic risks, making monitoring critical.

Community Sentiment

Market analysts on X/Twitter note the liquidation cluster resembles a gamma squeeze in options markets, where rapid price moves force dealer hedging. Bulls argue this is a healthy flush of weak hands, citing historical data from Glassnode showing similar patterns precede rallies. Bears highlight the extreme long bias in Zcash (81.39%) as a sign of speculative excess. One trader commented, "Liquidity grabs at these levels often mark local bottoms, but confirmation requires holding $88,500."

Price Prediction / Future Outlook

Bullish Case: If Bitcoin holds the $88,500 support and fills the FVG to $94,000, a rally toward $100,000 is plausible. Reduced leverage post-liquidations could stabilize prices, with Ethereum benefiting from its upcoming Pectra upgrade. Market structure suggests a 60% probability of this scenario, based on historical mean reversion after extreme fear.

Bearish Case: A break below $88,500 invalidates the bullish thesis, targeting $85,000 as the next order block. Continued ETF outflows and altcoin weakness, as seen in recent Ethereum whale movements to Bitstamp, could extend liquidations to $150 million daily. This scenario carries a 40% probability, with downside risk to $82,000 Fibonacci support.