- $175M in Bitcoin longs liquidated after the Jane Street suppression narrative unravels.
- BTC slips under $64K as funding rates flip and $44B open interest stalls.
- Iran-US tensions add pressure, keeping traders cautious amid heavy sell walls near $70K.
The recent Bitcoin rally just hit a wall built by one of Wall Street’s sneakiest players, Jane Street. The asset has failed to hold its bullish steam after news broke that Jane Street, the high-frequency trading giant, had been quietly suppressing the Bitcoin price.
Traders piled in on longs, hyped by the reveal, but it turned into another savage bull trap. Long liquidations have surged to $175 million, wiping out positions.
Jane Street’s market malpractice came to light amid the ongoing Terraform v. SEC lawsuit. The firm, known for its market-making muscle, allegedly leaned on BTC futures to manipulate upward spikes.
Once exposed, the BTC price jumped briefly as traders sensed relief from suppression. However, the momentum fizzled, resulting in market-wide liquidations.
$175M in Long Positions Get Liquidated
Data from the Coinglass liquidation heatmap shows red bars spike hard on longs, clustering around that $175M mark in a brutal 24-hour bloodbath before cooling to $71M.
The BTC price dipped below $64K on February 28 before clawing back to $66,855 with a 3% pop on March 1. But on a closer look, the open interest (OI) has stalled at $44 billion, only rising 0.04% intra-day.
Biannce 8-hour BTC funding rates hit a low of -0.0031% before turning positive (0.0065%) on March 1. However, the $44 billion OI is chump change compared to Bitcoin’s 24-hour trading volume drop of 1.25% to $68.9B.
This signals proof of hesitation as those green candles look strong until the red liquidation waves crash in, indicating overleveraged investors getting margin-called.
Looking at the CoinGlass Bitcoin exchange liquidation map, cumulative short liquidation leverages far surpassed corresponding longs over 30 days. This difference signals bearish sentiment in the market as traders anticipate price will likely drop in the coming days.
Looking deeper at the chart, Bitcoin price is likely to move lower than higher, as there are larger sell blocks (walls) around the $68K-$72K zone.
Geopolitical Chokehold Weakens Sentiment
Market sentiment remained in the dumps, thanks to the Iran-US tensions gripping global markets. Geopolitical heat has kept risk assets in a chokehold, with no exception for crypto.
Panic selling accelerated across derivatives, as traders dumped longs, fearing broader market dumps if things escalated. However, this is not new for Bitcoin. The asset has weathered suppression plays before, from big banks to whale dumps.
But Jane Street’s role here? That is a fresh salt in the wound as the firm’s futures bets created artificial ceilings, trapping retail traders who FOMO’d in post-reveal. Now, with $175M longs vaporized, the long/short ratio sits at 1.03, showing investors are wary.
If tensions cool, we might see a rebound as charts hint at support around $65K, with potential for a squeeze if shorts overextend. However, another Jane Street twist could send more longs to the slaughterhouse, so stay alert.
