$146 Million in Long Positions Liquidated Amid Market Volatility

Approximately $146 million (about ₩196.7 billion) in long positions were forcibly liquidated in the virtual asset derivatives market over a 24-hour period. However, due to differences in reporting agencies, exchange coverage, and timing, the total liquidation amount ranges from $10 million to $464 million, making it difficult to determine an exact figure for overall market losses.

Crypto Briefing reported that around $146 million in long positions centered on Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) were liquidated. Long positions refer to leveraged trades where traders buy expecting price increases. Liquidation occurs when a trader's margin falls below the maintenance threshold, prompting exchanges to forcibly close positions.

Crypto Briefing noted that the bulk of liquidations occurred across centralized exchanges including Binance, Bybit, and OKX, as well as decentralized derivatives platform Hyperliquid. Exact figures by exchange and precise timing were not provided. Similar timeframes reported varying numbers: TechFlow estimated total liquidations at $214 million (about ₩288.3 billion), with $126 million in long positions; KuCoin cited $194 million total, $115 million in longs.

MarginPad as of 1:54 PM KST on May 15 showed a 24-hour total liquidation value of $464.4 million (about ₩625.8 billion), with $285.1 million in long positions, though this figure differs from Crypto Briefing's due to varying exchange coverage and data collection methods.

High leverage increases the risk of liquidation even with small price movements. Crypto Briefing explained that theoretically, 10x leverage could lead to margin exhaustion with a 10% adverse move, 20x with 5%, and 50x with 2%. These calculations do not account for actual maintenance margins, fees, or position size.

While large-scale liquidations can create downward pressure through forced selling, the article notes that it's unclear whether a chain reaction of liquidations occurred based solely on this data. Previous reports have highlighted similar discrepancies in reported figures depending on data sources and timing, emphasizing the need for investors to verify exchange coverage and timeframes when analyzing derivatives market data.