Bitcoin Rebounds to $61,000 After $1.6 Billion Liquidation Wave
Bitcoin climbed back above $61,000 during Saturday's Asian morning session after briefly slipping under $60,000 overnight. The move followed a broad risk-off move across stocks, bonds and crypto sparked by Friday's stronger-than-expected U.S. jobs report.
The largest cryptocurrency touched a low of $59,227 before demand returned. It was changing hands near $61,000, about 1.3% lower on the day. Traders said the rebound came from a level that had been in focus after bitcoin drifted toward $60,000 throughout the week.
Selling pressure had been building as a record streak of ETF outflows and Strategy's first bitcoin sale since 2022 removed sources of support. Even after the overnight break of the round-number threshold, the slide did not accelerate, with bitcoin recovering more than $1,500 from the low.
The catalyst started outside crypto. Markets responded to Friday's firm nonfarm payrolls report by sharply repricing expectations for Federal Reserve policy. Interest-rate swaps now fully price in a rate increase by the end of 2026, reversing earlier expectations for cuts after Kevin Warsh was newly confirmed as chair.
Two-year Treasury yields rose 12 basis points to 4.16%, the dollar strengthened, and risk assets sold off. Losses were most severe in the AI-linked trade: the Nasdaq 100 fell about 5%, its steepest drop since April 2025, while a chipmaker index sank 10%. The S&P 500 slid 2.6% and failed to notch a tenth consecutive weekly gain.
Altcoins remained sharply lower over the week. Ether fell 21.6% over seven days to around $1,575, solana dropped 23.7% to $63, and XRP, dogecoin and BNB were each down between 13% and 20%. Hyperliquid's HYPE, which had held up better through much of the recent downturn, was down 9.9% over the same period.
Liquidations were heavy. CoinGlass data showed about $1.60 billion in positions wiped out over 24 hours across roughly 308,000 traders, with long positions accounting for $1.21 billion. Bitcoin posted $534 million in liquidations and ether $423 million. Zcash recorded another $115 million as it extended a 44% plunge tied to a disclosed bug in its Orchard privacy pool.
With $60,000 briefly breached but quickly recovered, traders are watching whether bitcoin can extend the rebound or whether a retest breaks the level. A decisive move below $60,000 would push the token back into a range last seen during the February drawdown.
