Bitcoin price briefly broke through the $42,000 mark earlier today, gaining 6.6% in the last 24 hours. This surge marks a recovery to levels last witnessed before the Terra crash in May 2022.
Liquidations in the crypto market have concurrently spiked, with over $160 million liquidated in the past 24 hours, primarily affecting short positions. Bitcoin’s price reached a peak of $42,100 and is currently trading at $41,603, following a slight decline subsequent to surpassing the $42,000 milestone.
Bitcoin’s Remarkable Value Increase
This surge represents a complete retracement to Bitcoin’s level above $41,000 in early May 2022, reflecting a remarkable value increase of over 150% since the beginning of the year. The global cryptocurrency market cap has also experienced a notable uptick, reaching $1.62 trillion, signifying a 4.0% increase within the past 24 hours. The last time the combined cryptocurrency market cap reached this level was in late April 2022.
In terms of trading volumes, November’s cryptocurrency exchange trading volume surpassed $826 billion, marking the highest monthly volume since March of the same year. Onchain data reveals that Bitcoin’s daily trading volume has increased from over $30 billion on December 1 to the current value of $32 billion, reaching a yearly high and its highest level since November 2022.
“Bitcoin’s value increase of over 150% since the beginning of the year reflects its growing importance in the global financial landscape.”
– Financial Analyst
The surge in Bitcoin’s price has not been without consequences, as evidenced by significant liquidations in the past 24 hours. Coinglass data indicates that 75,887 traders were liquidated, with total liquidations exceeding $216 million. The majority of these liquidations targeted short positions, with $166 million shorts wiped out compared to just over $50 million in long positions.
Other Cryptocurrencies Seeing Gains
While Bitcoin takes the spotlight, other blue-chip cryptocurrencies experienced varying gains on Monday. Ethereum (ETH) rose by over 4% to maintain its position above the $2,250 mark. BNB posted a more modest uptick of over 2%, reaching a current price of $234, while Solana traded flat, hovering around the $63.50 mark over the past 24 hours.