Bitcoin (BTC) forced the closure of $740 million in leveraged positions on Oct. 21 as the price swung from $110,552 to $114,019 before retreating toward $108,000, executing a classic short-squeeze followed by long liquidations that cleared excessive derivatives exposure.
Data from Coinglass shows $435.63 million in long positions and $304.64 million in shorts eliminated during the 24 hours.
When Bitcoin broke through the $111,500 liquidity zone, perpetual shorts faced cascading margin calls, reaching up to $114,000.
As upward momentum waned, long positions that had chased the breakout were liquidated during the decline, a pop-and-flush pattern characteristic of leverage resets.
Approximately $320 million in unwinds occurred around the dip to $108,000, with variations across data providers depending on the measurement window.
Funding rates entering the session sat near neutral following the prior week’s selloff, while futures open interest rebuilt toward $26 billion.
Open interest across futures and perpetuals held relatively stable through the volatility. CoinMarketCap data shows that futures open interest registered $3.47 billion, with a 0.91% daily increase, while perpetuals showed $969.71 billion, with a 0.02% decline.
Funding rates compressed from positive 0.005% to 0.004%, reflecting reduced willingness to pay premiums for leveraged long exposure after the round-trip price action eliminated speculative positions on both sides.
Derivatives neutrality signals a cleaner setup
The liquidation sequence left funding rates roughly flat and open interest lower than recent peaks, removing the overhang of crowded positioning that amplifies volatility.
Confirmation of a genuine reset requires
