Bitcoin drops below $80,000 as liquidations exceed $1.5 billion
Bitcoin dropped below $80,000 for the first time since April 2025 on January 31, erasing most of its 2026 gains. The move triggered more than $1.5 billion in forced liquidations within four hours as leveraged positions were closed across major exchanges.
The cryptocurrency briefly touched $74,000 on some exchanges before stabilizing near $78,000, according to market data from multiple trading venues. The move represents a 38% decline from Bitcoin’s October 2025 all-time high of $126,200, pushing prices to their lowest level in nine months.
The sell-off quickly cascaded through derivatives markets, triggering widespread forced liquidations. CoinGlass data showed more than $1.5 billion in leveraged positions were liquidated within a four-hour window, with long positions accounting for the majority of closures. ZeroHedge reported the liquidation figure early Friday afternoon as Bitcoin continued declining through U.S. trading hours.
Over the past week, Bitcoin has seen sustained liquidation pressure. CoinDesk reported $1.68 billion in liquidations on January 29-30, with Bitcoin accounting for $780 million and Ethereum for $414 million. An earlier wave on January 21 eliminated $1.09 billion in positions, 92% of which were long bets on higher prices.
U.S.-listed spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded $1.7 billion in net outflows over the past seven days, according to Farside Investors data cited by multiple outlets. The sustained redemptions mark the largest weekly outflow since the products launched in January 2024, underscoring continued pressure from traditional investors.
Bitcoin network fundamentals showed mixed signals during the decline. The Bitcoin hashrate dropped below 1 zetahash per second for the first time in four months earlier this week, though miner profitability has stabilized in recent days according to on-chain analytics providers.
On-chain data from Santiment showed 335,772 new Bitcoin addresses were created in the 24 hours preceding the drop to $80,000, marking the highest daily address creation since November 2025. The spike occurred as price declined, suggesting new participants entered at lower price levels.
Gold declined sharply over the same period, falling nearly 10% between Thursday and Friday. Bitcoin’s 5.6% decline over the same window was smaller in percentage terms, though both assets sold off alongside broader risk markets.
Bitcoin is trading approximately 3% above its January 1, 2026 opening level after briefly reaching $97,500 earlier in the month. Analysts cited by CoinDesk point to $75,000 as the next key support level, an area where buyers previously emerged during the April 2025 drawdown.
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