Bitcoin recorded its worst daily performance since early June, falling 3.3% to $103,556 as Israeli air strikes against Iran triggered a massive wave of liquidations in the crypto market, with over $1.16 billion in leveraged positions wiped out in just 24 hours.
The selling phase began in the early hours of the day, shortly before Israeli forces launched Operation Rising Lion , hitting what Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called “the heart of Iran’s nuclear program ,” including the Natanz enrichment facility and military infrastructure near Tehran and Tabriz.
This sudden geopolitical conflict has had a direct impact on global financial markets : Bitcoin has fallen from a high of $108,500 in the previous 24 hours, as investors have moved away from risk assets in response to escalating tensions in the Middle East.
The liquidation data reveals the depth of the panic in the markets: long positions were hit the hardest, with over $1.16 billion liquidated, compared to just $113.97 million in short positions.
The domino effect quickly amplified throughout the day, starting with $20 million in liquidations in the first hour, then rocketing to nearly $1 billion over the next 12 hours as algorithmic trading systems and leveraged positions were systematically wiped out.
Israeli Attack Exposes Excessive Leverage in Crypto Market
The Israeli raids, which began around 3:30 a.m. local time in Tehran, exposed how the cryptocurrency market was exposed to excessive leverage. What started as a geopolitical event quickly turned into a large-scale technical collapse.
The announcement by the Israeli Prime Minister, who stated that “the operation will continue for as many days as necessary to eliminate the threat” , fueled a climate of prolonged uncertainty, preventing any concrete attempt at a rebound during the market session.
The speed and magnitude of the crash, amplified by automated trading systems that treat cryptocurrencies as risk -off assets , have contributed to a dramatic shift in sentiment in a market already highly overleveraged.
Iran's immediate counteroffensive , which launched around 100 drones against Israel and declared a national state of emergency, further fueled the climate of panic , keeping selling pressure high on all major cryptocurrencies:
Ethereum (ETH) is down more than 8% from a weekly high of $2,700 to $2,500
XRP lost 6%
Solana (SOL) is down 9%
Dogecoin (DOGE) also dropped by 9%.
This indicates that the sell-off was indiscriminate across the market and not limited to Bitcoin alone.
Technical Analysis Suggests Further Downside Possible for Bitcoin
Price action across multiple timeframes highlighted that geopolitical developments had triggered technical breakouts that had been forming for weeks, signaling that the market was already vulnerable and waiting for an external catalyst to trigger a correction.
The hourly chart showed a strong breakout of Bitcoin below the key support at $106,500, with three clear rejection points in the supply zone between $109,500 and $110,500, signaling strong selling pressure from institutional investors. The bearish breakout pushed Bitcoin below the psychological $105,000 mark, with the next major demand area located around the round target of $100,000.
The 4-hour timeframe analysis also showed a descending channel pattern that has been holding Bitcoin since its peak above $112,000. The recent break below the lower line of the channel suggests an acceleration of the downtrend.
The volume profile showed a significant increase in selling activity in conjunction with the geopolitical news, while the resistance level around $112,000 now appears particularly solid, making any recovery attempts difficult .
The technical structure suggests that any bounces could meet fresh bearish pressure, with the breakout of the channel targeting the demand zone between $100,000 and $102,000.
The most worrying aspect was the breakout of the ascending wedge within the Ichimoku indicator on the four-hour timeframe: Bitcoin fell below the “cloud”, signaling a reversal of momentum from bullish to bearish.
Rising wedges indicate diminishing buying pressure despite rising prices, and their downside breakout often leads to sharp declines, with technical targets in this case around $96,000.
This technical target corresponds to previous significant support levels and implies a downside of about 10% from current values. This scenario indicates the possibility of further downward pressure, especially if geopolitical tensions were to persist or if new macroeconomic factors were to emerge that could penalize risk assets.
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