On October 1, there was a surprise jump in the price of Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), and other cryptocurrencies, resulting in over $70 million in crypto shorts being liquidated.
Bitcoin experienced a 3% surge in just 15 minutes, going from $27,100 to $28,053, before settling just below $28,000 at the time of publication. The price of Ethereum’s native currency, Ether, also saw a spike, gaining as much as 4.7% to reach $1,755, and then leveling out to $1,727.
Happy Uptober to those who celebrate.
Remember 2021? pic.twitter.com/qgHy1ThGOf
— The Wolf Of All Streets (@scottmelker) October 2, 2023
This sudden price movement puzzled many in the community, with some attributing it to the arrival of “Uptober.”
Welcome to Uptober.
Welcome to Q4, which is leading towards a great quarter, potentially fueled by ETF approvals and the pre-halving rally.
Potentially #Bitcoin to $40,000 is reasonable.
— Michaël van de Poppe (@CryptoMichNL) October 1, 2023
Others speculated that someone might have insider information prompting the price movement.
“Uptober” is a term used in the crypto community to describe October as a bullish month for Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. Since 2013, October has only seen negative monthly returns twice, according to data from CoinGlass.
One event that the crypto market is optimistic about is the potential approval of a spot Bitcoin ETF product by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission. However, analysts believe that January 2024 is the most likely time for such an announcement.
Related: Will Bitcoin ‘Uptober’ bring gains for MKR, AAVE, RUNE and INJ?
While spot and long position holders celebrated the significant price action after a month of stagnation, short sellers faced losses.
Within two hours, the rapid increase in price resulted in the liquidation of $70 million in short positions.
According to data from Coinglass, about $36 million worth of BTC shorts and $23 million worth of ETH shorts were affected by the sudden price move.
Image Source: Hi my name is Jacco / Shutterstock
