Nearly $300 million in crypto short positions obliterated 

The recent rally in the crypto market shook up leveraged positions on both sides of the aisle, but short investors took the biggest hit of the day.

Bitcoin (BTC) surged over 13% last week, topping $70,000 for the first time since last month’s halving. According to CoinMarketCap, the leading blockchain asset was less than 5% below its all-time high (ATH) set in March.

Ethereum (ETH), the second-largest cryptocurrency, has reclaimed a $450 billion market with a 30% gain over the week and may soon test the $4,000 level.

BTC and ETH rally | Source: CoinMarketCap

Price increases were accompanied by a market-wide recovery; The total cryptocurrency market capitalization increased by more than 7% in 24 hours, reaching $2.7 trillion, per CoinGecko. Trade volumes also doubled, reaching 220.5 billion dollars.

Digital asset market cap and volume | Source: CoinGecko

This fluctuation in the market brought volatility that caused investors to invest at higher or lower prices. In financial markets, investors who predict price increases take long positions, while those who bet on price decreases are called short positions.

CoinGlass liquidation data dated May 21 showed that more than $380.5 million of leveraged positions were wiped out, shorts accounted for $294.3 million, and approximately $97.2 million represented liquidated long positions.

Ether short sales resulted in liquidations of more than $104.9 million, the largest of any crypto asset. This was followed by Bitcoin short positions with $83.1 million, while Solana (SOL) short positions with $16.9 million were second and third respectively.

Best crypto liquidations on May 21 | Source: CoinGlass