$300M Shorts Liquidated as Bitcoin Soars to 18-Week High

After a few days of trading sideways and even slipping below $21,000, the bitcoin bulls returned on Saturday morning to push the asset to its highest price tag since September 13.

With most altcoins well in the green as well, the number of liquidated short traders has soared.

• The start of 2023 continues to bring good news for the bitcoin bulls, which were quite dishearted following the painful 2022. However, BTC had added over $5,000 in the first few weeks of the new year and had tapped $21,500 to mark a multi-month high a few days ago.
• The end of last week was significantly calmer, with bitcoin sitting around $21,000 and the bulls having to fight for that level, despite the numerous positive signs suggesting the end of the bear market.
• Similar to last Saturday morning, though, they seem to be getting the upper hand in this battle as they pushed bitcoin not only beyond $21,000 but also above $22,000. In fact, BTC tapped an intraday high of just under $22,800. This is the highest it has been in over three months.

• Most altcoins have followed suit. Ethereum has skyrocketed above $1,600 following a 6.5% daily increase. Solana and OKB have taken the lead with massive double-digit price pumps. Consequently, SOL sits close to $25, while OKB is at $35.
• The crypto market cap has also reclaimed the coveted $1 trillion mark even on CoinMarketCap. Naturally, these explosive moves have harmed short traders.
• The total value of liquidated positions in the past 24 hours is just under $300 million, $245 million of which are from short traders.