Crypto’s $200 Billion Vanishing Act: A Market Meltdown for the Ages 🤑📉

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It seems the crypto markets have decided to take a rather dramatic turn for the worse, plunging a staggering $200 billion in a mere 24 hours. The market capitalization, once a proud and robust figure, now stands at a rather diminished $3.1 trillion, a drop of 8% on the day. February 25, 2023, will go down in history as the day the crypto market decided to take a long, hard look at itself in the mirror and found it rather unflattering.

This is the lowest the markets have been since mid-November, a period that has seen the obliteration of almost all gains since the election of one Donald J. Trump. A veritable return to the Dark Ages, one might say, with the total market cap now teetering on the brink of longer-term support levels. A fall below $3 trillion, and we might just witness the end of the bull market as we know it. 🐬🚀

$1B in Liquidations: A Day to Remember

Coinglass, the ever-reliable chronicler of crypto’s woes, reports that over 314,000 traders have been liquidated in the past 24 hours, to the tune of almost a billion dollars. Over 90% of these liquidations were in long positions, with the largest single liquidation order happening on BitMEX, a rather substantial $10 million worth of Bitcoin. A day to remember, indeed. 🤑

Bitcoin, the erstwhile king of the crypto world, has dumped more than 5% in a matter of hours, falling from a lofty $96,000 to a rather more modest $91,000. At the time of writing, it appeared to have found some semblance of support and reclaimed $91,500 during the Tuesday morning Asian trading session. A small victory, perhaps, but a victory nonetheless. 🚀

Ethereum, ever the loyal sidekick, lost around 10%, falling back below $2,500. However, it is showing little signs of a recovery bounce, much to the chagrin of its many devotees. The Altcoins, meanwhile, have been obliterated with double-digit losses for Solana (SOL), which is now down more than 50% in a little over a month following the bursting of the meme coin bubble. Chainlink (LINK), Avalanche (Avax), Sui (SUI), and Hyperliquid (HYPE) were also in double-digit losses this morning. A veritable bloodbath, one might say. 🩸

Analysts, ever the stoic observers of market chaos, remain unfazed, having seen this behavior many times before. As one wise analyst put it, “Prepare for both scenarios, well in advance. If you’re caught by this move, feeling unsure about what to do, it means you didn’t have a plan. Low $90ks is the first leg of my plan, and the air-pocket below $86k is the second. Higher eventually, have a plan for that too.” 📈

Fear and Greed: The Eternal Pendulum

The Bitcoin Fear & Greed Index has plunged to its lowest level since September, hitting “extreme fear” at 25 on Tuesday, following neutral readings for the past week or so. On the upside, there have been several similar market meltdowns in recent months, including a 7.5% crash on Dec. 9, a 10% meltdown on Dec. 19, a 7.5% slump on Jan. 7, and an 8% dump on Feb. 2, which markets never recovered from. A rollercoaster ride, to be sure. 🎢

Macro investor Raoul Pal, ever the voice of reason, pointed out that these massive pullbacks have happened in previous cycles and are perfectly normal. “You guys all need to learn patience… This was 2017. Very similar macro structure: 5 x 28%+ pullbacks in BTC. Most lasted 2 to 3 months before a new high. Alts saw 65% corrections. All were noise. Go do something else more constructive than stare at the screen.” 📊

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2025-02-25 10:01