- Bitcoin saw a 5% daily surge that pushed BTC to a new all-time high above $118,000.
- The sudden gains had shorts wiped out, with over $1.1 billion in short positions liquidated in 24 hours.
- A trader on HTX was liquidated for $88 million.
A spark of bullish momentum has seen Bitcoin smash through the $118,000 mark today, setting a new all-time high.
The sharp move that had BTC moving from off the $110k low has triggered a massive wave of liquidations, which have wiped out over $1 billion in short positions across the cryptocurrency market in the past 24 hours.
The surge, fueled by institutional demand, regulatory clarity, and macroeconomic shifts, has sent shockwaves through the crypto space, leaving traders and analysts scrambling to predict what’s next for the world’s largest digital asset
Shorts see red amid $1.2 billion in liquidations
Bitcoin, the crypto market’s bellwether, surged to a new all-time high of $118,403 on Friday, July 2025.
Robust institutional demand and $1.18 billion in net inflows to Bitcoin spot ETFs on July 10 highlighted this move.
Macro headwinds, with investors factoring in possible Fed rate cuts, have also added to the upside fuel.
This rally triggered a massive short squeeze, with over $1.2 billion in crypto liquidations in the past 24 hours, a 140% increase from the prior day.
The most dramatic fallout from Bitcoin’s surge was the annihilation of short-sellers.
Over $1.11 billion in short contracts were liquidated in the past 24 hours, with $635 million tied to Bitcoin and $208 million to Ether, affecting 269,681 traders.
One notable casualty was a single trader on the HTX exchange, whose $88 million short position was wiped out, underscoring the intensity of the market’s upward momentum.
Whales make moves as Bitcoin surges
With Bitcoin breaking a new all-time high, large holders were keen to keep hold of their windfalls.
It included a Binance whale’s “powerful punch” that helped the market higher. CryptoQuant highlighted this in a post on X.
“Until recently, whales on the US-based Coinbase exchange were driving the market, but today’s surge was driven by a significant move from a major whale on the Binance exchange,” said CryptoQuant’s DanCoinInvestor.
While others bought BTC, some scrambled to preserve their positions amid massive liquidations.
According to Lookonchain, a whale who was down by more than $10 million on a 1,135 BTC or $132.65 million short position, opted to deposit more funds to avoid liquidation.
The whale added the $5.5 million USDC to his position on Hyperliquid with a new liquidation price of $121,080.
James Wynn, recently in the headlines for major losses, has also seen positions wiped out in the last 24 hours.
James Wynn’s $BTC short position got fully liquidated in less than 12 hours, resulting in another loss of $27,921.63!https://t.co/205yuTcrz1 pic.twitter.com/AyVORksque
— Lookonchain (@lookonchain) July 11, 2025
As BTC eyes further gains, analysts are saying the supply-side dynamics are tightening.
For instance, Glassnode has noted that long-term holders and smaller entities are accumulating Bitcoin faster than its issuance rate.
This accumulation, coupled with compressed volatility across all timeframes, has set the stage for Bitcoin’s breakout, with analysts eyeing $120,000 as the next psychological target.
