Bitcoin drops below $54K as crypto liquidations near $665M

Bitcoin (BTC) hit a four-month low of $53,499 on Coinbase as news of Mt. Gox’s latest cold wallet transfer hit the markets.

BTC plummeted starting at around July 5 at 4:19 am UTC — its lowest level since late February, per TradingView. Meanwhile, crypto liquidations have climbed to $664.5 million over the past 24 hours — its highest in two months, according to CoinGlass.

Bitcoin has slightly recovered to $54,300, down around 7.4% in the last 24 hours.

Other highly traded cryptocurrencies, including Ether (ETH) and Solana (SOL), also saw near 10% drops on the day. ETH dropped to $2,89820, below its key $3,000 level it held since mid-May, according to Cointelegraph Markets Pro.

Crypto liquidations over the past 24 hours include $584 million in long bets and almost $82 million in shorts, with long BTC positions making up $222 million of the total.

Positive sentiment toward crypto has also hit its lowest point since January 2023, with the Crypto Fear & Greed Index reflecting a score of 29 out of 100 on July 5, showing the market is experiencing “Fear.”

Related: Bitcoin traders express optimism even as BTC price targets shift lower

Traders are spooked by possible sell pressure expected to come from $8.5 billion in Bitcoin creditor paybacks by the collapsed crypto exchange Mt. Gox.

On July 5, the exchange transferred 47,229 BTC, worth around $2.6 billion, to a new address in its first major move since May.

Germany’s government has added to the Bitcoin sale-side pressure, selling 7,583 BTC worth $419.5 million since June 19. It still holds 42,274 BTC, which is worth around $2.3 billion.

10x Research analyst Markus Thielen on July 4 said he expects Bitcoin to fall as low as $50,000 due to sell pressure on the cryptocurrency.

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Update (July 5, 4:30 am UTC): This article has been updated after Bitcoin fell under $54,000, adding new information and updating figures throughout.