Bitcoin Slips Below $82,000 as $771M in Crypto Liquidations Hit Longs

Author: Crypffalo Research · 10:56 13/10/2026

Bitcoin fell to about $81,400, down 2.8% in 24 hours, triggering roughly $771 million in liquidations, mostly longs, as South Korea's Kospi tumbled and ETF outflows mounted.

Bitcoin Slips Below $82,000 as $771M in Crypto Liquidations Hit Longs

Bitcoin slid below $82,000 late Monday, Oct 12, in U.S. trading, falling to about $81,382 at 9:20 p.m. ET, down 2.8% over 24 hours. Earlier on Monday, the largest cryptocurrency had been changing hands near $84,200.

The drop triggered more than $771 million in liquidations across crypto derivatives markets over 24 hours, according to CoinGlass data cited by The Block. Longs took the bulk of the damage, with roughly $685.6 million in bullish leveraged bets wiped out.

Key takeaways

BTC price: Fell from about $84,200 to $81,382, down 2.8% in 24 hours, before bouncing to the $82,600–$82,900 area on Tuesday morning in Asia.
Liquidations: About $771 million in 24 hours, including roughly $685.6 million in longs.
Altcoins: ETH dropped 4.6% to $2,425, SOL fell 7.5%, XRP lost 6.4% and Zcash slid 10.4%.
Equities: South Korea's Kospi fell more than 5% on Tuesday morning, triggering a sell-side trading curb.
ETF flows: U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs saw $681.1 million in net outflows last week, while spot ether ETFs lost $542 million.

How the sell-off unfolded

Most of the decline came during the U.S. session on Monday and carried into Asian hours. As BTC broke through the $83,200 and $82,400 areas, leveraged longs were forcibly closed, which accelerated the selling.

In the past 12 hours alone, liquidations reached about $631.8 million, with around $600 million coming from longs. KuCoin's market report said BTC bottomed near $81,000 before rebounding.

24-hour drops in major coins and liquidations

Altcoins fell harder than bitcoin, a familiar pattern during leverage flushes. Zcash posted a notable loss among large-cap tokens, sliding 10.4% to $1,149.

Why is crypto falling?

Analysts pointed to several pressures hitting at once, mostly from macro and equity markets:

Yields and the dollar: Dominick John of Zeus Research said elevated Treasury yields and a stronger dollar are weighing on risk appetite as traders turn cautious ahead of U.S. inflation data.
Tech stocks: Selling in U.S. semiconductor and memory stocks spilled into Asia. KED Global said worries over the cost of sustaining the AI investment boom and progress by Chinese memory-chip makers kept foreign investors selling Samsung and SK Hynix.
Kospi slide: According to Korea JoongAng Daily, a sell-side "sidecar" was triggered at 9:48 a.m. Seoul time on Tuesday, halting program trading for five minutes. Min Jung of Presto Research said the Kospi was down about 6.1% at 10:45 a.m.
Cooling institutional demand: SoSoValue data show last week's spot bitcoin ETF outflows were the largest since late June.

Bitmine's Tom Lee said the Korean sell-off could be "spilling over into crypto." Notably, Strategy bought just 250 BTC last week, while Bitmine added 12,532 ETH, both relatively modest purchases.

What it means for crypto markets

The liquidation wave has cleared out some long leverage, but sentiment remains fragile while global equities are under pressure. Justin d'Anethan of Arctic Digital said the drop does not invalidate a possible bottom and may instead reflect a recalibration and the formation of a new support zone.

Bull case: BTC holds the $81,000 area, Asian equities stabilize and inflation data does not run hot, allowing a recovery toward $83,000–$84,000.
Risk case: The Kospi and U.S. tech stocks keep falling and ETF outflows continue, pushing BTC below $81,000 and triggering another round of long liquidations.

The Crypto Fear & Greed Index fell from 69 to 57, according to KuCoin's report. With leverage still elevated, sharp moves in either direction remain a risk to account for.

What to watch next

U.S. September CPI, due Wednesday, Oct 14, at 8:30 a.m. ET (7:30 p.m. GMT+7); see our economic calendar.
Moves in the Kospi and U.S. semiconductor stocks in the coming sessions.
Spot bitcoin and ether ETF flows early this week on Farside and SoSoValue.
Live liquidation data on our real-time liquidations page.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is bitcoin down today?

Bitcoin fell on pressure from high Treasury yields, a stronger dollar, a tech-stock sell-off that spread to South Korea, and ETF outflows. Liquidations of leveraged longs then sped up the decline.

How much was liquidated in the crypto sell-off?

About $771 million was liquidated over 24 hours, according to CoinGlass, including roughly $685.6 million in longs.

How does the Kospi affect crypto?

South Korea is a highly active crypto market, and when local stocks drop sharply, investors often cut risk across asset classes. Some analysts say the Kospi slide has spilled over into crypto.

*This content is for information only and is not financial advice.*

Tags: Bitcoin, Liquidations, Kospi, ETF, CPI

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