U.S.-Iran truce erases $150M in crypto shorts; Bitcoin nears $66k

About $150 million in short cryptocurrency positions were liquidated after the United States and Iran reached a truce, as bitcoin climbed back above $65,000 and approached $66,000.

President Donald Trump declared the agreement “officially complete” and described the Strait of Hormuz as “now open.” The comments coincided with roughly a 4% drop in crude oil prices and prompted traders to unwind positions that had priced in a prolonged Middle East conflict.

Exchanges reported forced closures of leveraged short positions when margin requirements were no longer met. Rapid forced buybacks of short positions occurred in quick succession, driving the price higher until exchanges closed out exposure.

Over the week of June 8–12, spot bitcoin exchange-traded funds recorded about $316 million in net outflows, the fifth consecutive week of withdrawals. Spot ether ETFs saw roughly $14.91 million in outflows during the same period. Those institutional redemptions continued even as leveraged short-covering pushed prices up.

A signing ceremony for the truce is scheduled for Friday in Switzerland. Market participants say the event could influence whether the recent short-covering is sustained or gives way to renewed selling.

Short liquidations happen when rising prices cause leveraged short sellers to fail margin calls and exchanges close their positions. When short positions are closed, the sellers must buy the asset to cover losses, which can add upward pressure on price while the forced buying persists.