Crypto liquidations exceed $1.50 billion as hack prompts Binance to freeze $3 billion

• Nearly $6 billion flows out following a suspected hack of Binance wallets on the Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Tron networks.
• More than $1.50 billion has been wiped out over the past 24 hours, according to CoinGlass data, as sentiment across the wider market shifts towards bearishness.
• After Thursday’s 4% fall, Bitcoin drops below $77,000 on Friday and is on course for a bearish October close, with losses of about 8%.

Potential losses of $1.45 billion in Bitcoin (BTC) and $875 million in Ethereum (ETH) from a reported hack of Binance wallets could make it the largest crypto hack on record. The news has left the wider cryptocurrency market in negative territory on Friday. With Bitcoin falling below $77,000, total liquidations in the derivatives market have exceeded $1.50 billion over the past 24 hours.

Binance faces risk of record crypto hack

A possible breach of Binance's hot wallet was reported early on by Changpeng Zhao, the exchange's former CEO. Wallets on the Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Tron (TRX) networks are affected by the suspected hack, leaving $1.45 billion in BTC, $875 million in ETH, and other crypto assets at risk.

With assistance from Tether and Circle, leading issuers of US dollar-pegged stablecoins, Binance said in a recent X post that $3 billion in crypto assets had been frozen. Separate posts on X from Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino and Circle Co-founder Jeremy Allaire disclosed freezes of $1.567 billion in USDT and $800 million in USDC. 

In every social media update, Binance has reiterated that user funds remain safe. Its internal teams are continuing to work closely with law enforcement, issuers, blockchain intelligence firms, and industry partners to track down and freeze further assets. 

Bitcoin falls below $77,000 as crypto liquidations exceed $1.50 billion

Reports of a hack worth more than $3 billion at Binance, the largest centralised crypto exchange (CEX) by trading volume, circulated rapidly among investors. On Friday, panic-driven selling has taken Bitcoin below $77,000, adding to the previous day's 4% fall.

More than $1.50 billion in leveraged market positions has also been wiped out by the sell-off. Of the $1.51 billion in total liquidations recorded by CoinGlass over the past 24 hours, long positions accounted for $1.30 billion, underscoring the near-term panic selling.

Technical outlook: Bitcoin faces risk of a deeper correction below $75,000

Below the 50-day Exponential Moving Average (EMA) at $80,556, Bitcoin retains a bearish near-term bias as it trades around $76,676 at the time of writing on Friday. It remains just above the 200-day EMA at $76,457. With the price sitting between long-term support and nearby overhead supply, the broader uptrend is still technically intact, though under pressure.

At 32, the Relative Strength Index (RSI) is close to oversold territory, suggesting that selling may be running out of steam. However, the Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) remains firmly negative, indicating that downside risks have not receded.

The 200-day EMA near $76,457 offers immediate downside support, with the horizontal floor at $75,545 below it. Should the price close below this support cluster on a daily basis, $70,000 would come into view as the next downside target.

Any advance would first encounter resistance at the 50-day EMA of $80,556, followed by the horizontal barrier at $81,272. To temper the prevailing bearish tone and open the way back towards recent highs, a stronger recovery would have to break above $87,395.

(The technical analysis of this story was written with the help of an AI tool. Know more.)