Bitcoin Breaks Below $70,000 as $1.2 Billion in Liquidations Hits Leveraged Traders

Bitcoin fell below $70,000 for the first time since August, dropping more than 6% as leveraged traders absorbed roughly $1.23 billion in forced liquidations across cryptocurrency exchanges over 24 hours. The move leaves Bitcoin down approximately 45% from its October 2025 record of $126,198 — a drawdown comparable to erasing nearly half the value of every dollar invested at the peak.

According to crypto.news market data, BTC traded near $68,750 early on Friday, November 13, after briefly touching almost $68,500 on Binance. Ethereum slipped below $2,000, Solana traded under $80, and XRP approached $1. The session opened at $71,460 before sellers drove price to the daily low, extending a pattern of lower highs and lower lows.

How much was liquidated, and by whom?

CoinGlass data shows exchanges liquidated about $1.23 billion in leveraged positions, affecting more than 151,000 traders. Bitcoin alone accounted for roughly $677.5 million — approximately $653.5 million in long positions and $24.1 million in shorts. Longs represented more than 96% of Bitcoin's liquidations, a figure that reveals how one-sided leveraged positioning had become.

The largest single reported liquidation was a BTC-USD position worth $31.09 million on Hyperliquid. Forced closures of this kind can add selling pressure while prices fall, particularly when clustered positions hit their thresholds near the same level. The liquidation cascade, not spot selling alone, explains the severity of the breakdown.

What drove the selloff?

Three pressures converged. First, the US Dollar Index climbed above 103 on Thursday, its highest level in roughly 19 months, after stronger-than-expected inflation figures lifted Treasury yields and reinforced expectations of another Federal Reserve rate hike in December. Higher rates make interest-bearing assets more attractive relative to Bitcoin, which pays no yield.

Second, Nvidia confirmed that CEO and board member Jensen Huang resigned, with CFO Colette Kress appointed interim chief executive. Nvidia shares fell, and the leadership uncertainty weighed on sentiment toward technology and AI-linked investments broadly. Bitcoin had already slipped below $73,000 on November 12 as the crisis unfolded.

Third, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps claimed an attack on a US early-warning radar installation in Bahrain, describing it as retaliation for an alleged air attack on a telecommunications tower in Sirik, southern Iran. US and Bahraini authorities had not immediately confirmed the reported damage. Notably, oil did not surge in tandem — West Texas Intermediate held near $88 per barrel — suggesting the geopolitical bid for the narrative exceeds the market's actual repricing.

Are institutions pulling back?

The flow data says yes. Farside Investors recorded $299.8 million in net withdrawals from US spot Bitcoin ETFs on November 11, with BlackRock's IBIT accounting for $269.7 million of that total. Across five consecutive trading sessions, outflows reached approximately $1.44 billion — roughly $288 million per day, an institutional retreat that undercuts the passive-demand thesis.

MSCI separately confirmed index changes effective after November 30, including the removal of Strategy, the largest publicly traded corporate Bitcoin holder. Passive funds tracking those indexes may be forced to sell Strategy shares. The decision does not require Strategy itself to sell its Bitcoin holdings — a distinction the headlines have largely omitted.

What do the technicals and analysts say?

The Chande Momentum Oscillator read -88.53 on the daily chart, an oversold level indicating strong negative momentum. Immediate support sits between $68,500 and $69,000; a sustained break could expose $65,000. Resistance lies at $71,000 to $71,500, then $72,727 and $74,811.

Analyst Doctor Profit maintained a bullish stance in a November 13 post on X: "Ignore the noise. I remain insanely bullish on Bitcoin." He said he holds spot positions entered near $60,000 and leveraged longs from $80,000. The technical picture, however, contradicts that confidence — momentum remains negative, and the recovery he cites has not yet reclaimed a single prior resistance level.

The next catalysts are concrete: upcoming ETF flow figures and fresh US inflation data will test both institutional demand and Fed rate expectations.