Bitcoin Nurphoto / Getty ImagesIn the midst of bitcoin's rally to $40,000., $883 million worth crypto short positions were liquidated within 24 hoursThe Block stated that 81% of the squeeze was due to short positions in bitcoin.According to The Block, this liquidation event caused one of the biggest dollar losses for traders who were short bitcoin with margin or futures products.Subscribe to our daily newsletter 10 Things Before The Opening Bell.In the midst of bitcoin's rally to $40,000., $883 million worth crypto short positions were sold in 24 hours.The Block compiled data from Bybt.com that shows that bitcoin short positions accounted for 81%. $720 million was liquidated.The majority of crypto short liquidations occurred late Sunday night, when bitcoin's price spiked 10% and broke the $39,000 mark for the first-time in six weeks.Insider was told by Ryan Todd, a research analyst at The Block that, given the historically high price of bitcoin relative to previous cycles, this liquidation event incurred one of the highest dollar losses for traders who were short bitcoin with margin or futures products.Todd stated that he has seen similar situations in the past, when bitcoin entered a volatile trading range for several week and traders positioned towards a bearish bias. Todd cited the $1 billion liquidation in December that saw bitcoin surpass $20,000 and the January $800 million liquidation at bitcoin's $30,000.He said that he was not surprised at the volume of liquidations due to the nature of bitcoin markets.This is normal business for crypto, a market that is highly volatile and is exposed to high levels product leverage on these exchanges. Todd stated that liquidations can be cut either way depending on sharp spot movement to the upside or down.According to Coinmarketcap, bitcoin had risen 18% to $40,499 as of Monday afternoon.BYBT.com, The Block
