$70 Million Lost as Bitcoin and Other Cryptos Jump in Price
Big jump in Bitcoin and Ether prices on Oct. 1 wipes out $70 million in bets against the market (short trades).
A surprise increase in the prices of Bitcoin, Ether, and other digital currencies on Oct. 1 caused over $70 million in crypto shorts (bets against the market) to be suddenly wiped out.
Bitcoin’s price quickly rose 3%, moving from $27,100 to $28,053 in a fast 15 minutes, according to TradingView data. It then settled slightly below $28,000. In a similar way, Ether, the currency of Ethereum, also experienced a quick jump, rising up to 4.7% to hit $1,755, then steadying at $1,727.
This unexpected change left many people in the crypto community wondering why it happened. Some pointed to the arrival of “Uptober,” a term used in the crypto world to describe the typically strong market performance in October. Since 2013, October has only seen negative monthly returns twice, based on Coinpaprika data.
Everyone is now watching to see if the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission will approve a Bitcoin exchange-traded fund, though many experts think this might not happen until January 2024. Unfortunately, while the price jump might have been good for some, it was bad for short sellers, who saw $70 million in short positions wiped out in two hours. The quick rise “rekt” nearly $36 million in BTC shorts and $23 million in ETH shorts, according to CoinGlass.
