Bitcoin's 3.45% Move: Technical Rebound After Liquidation Wave

Understanding Bitcoin's 3.45 Percentage Point Move Over the Last 13 Hours

The 3.45 percentage point move in Bitcoin over the last 13 hours is mainly a technical rebound after a leverage driven selloff linked to liquidations, ETF outflows, and macro or regulatory worries.

Leverage Flush And Liquidations

A large part of the move you are seeing is the tail end of a classic leverage flush.

1. Multiple sources report that Bitcoin’s drop below roughly $75k overnight triggered a very large derivatives liquidation wave, with total crypto liquidations near $900M–$1B in 24 hours and Bitcoin responsible for the single biggest share of that amount.[^1][^2]
2. One analysis notes that around $371M–$378M of Bitcoin futures positions were liquidated in that window, with the overwhelming majority being long positions, meaning traders were heavily positioned for upside and got forced out as price fell.[^2][^3]
3. Other coverage puts total long liquidations across crypto at roughly $575M–$670M in 24 hours, again showing that the move was driven more by leverage unwinding than by organic spot selling alone.[^1][^4]

When a market is long crowded and price breaks below a key level, forced long liquidations add sell pressure, which pushes price further down, triggering more liquidations. That explains the sharp leg lower from above $77k toward the mid 74k region. Once that cascade runs its course and open interest is reduced, the market often stabilises and partially mean reverts. The positive 13 hour move you quote fits that pattern.

The immediate driver behind the move was not a single new headline inside the last 13 hours. It was the market mechanically clearing excessive leverage built up earlier, then bouncing once that pressure eased.

Macro, Regulation And ETF Flows Behind The Drop

Behind the liquidation cascade there are several macro and regulatory currents that explain why BTC was vulnerable in the first place.

1. Spot demand and ETF flows weakened meaningfully in the days leading into this move. One detailed analysis highlights that Bitcoin spot demand has been contracting at the fastest pace since January, Bitcoin ETFs have seen over $2B of outflows in the last two weeks, and this demand fracture made prices above roughly $77k hard to sustain.[^5] Another report notes more than $1.25B of outflows from Bitcoin ETFs over six consecutive days, partly linked to rising US Treasury yields.[^6]
2. US monetary policy expectations turned less friendly. Kevin Warsh was sworn in as Federal Reserve chair on May 22, with futures markets pricing a high probability of at least one rate hike by December and analysts warning that if inflation stays elevated there could be as much as 100 bps of tightening, which is negative for risk assets including Bitcoin.[^7] A separate commentary argues that markets are torn between the risk of hikes and hopes for future cuts, adding to uncertainty that encourages de‑risking.[^8]
3. Regulatory headlines added another layer of concern. A widely circulated piece reports that Bitcoin dropped about $2,600 in 24 hours as the SEC delayed a planned exemption related to tokenized stock trading, coinciding with more than $500M in long liquidations and a clear shift in risk sentiment.[^9] Another coverage of the SEC’s new tokenization rule, while clarifying that synthetic tokens will not be allowed, still keeps regulatory risk in focus for crypto markets.[^10]
4. Geopolitical risk in the Middle East remains elevated. Several reports tie broader Bitcoin weakness and a move into defensive positioning to ongoing US–Iran tensions and expectations of additional US military strikes, with some officials cancelling weekend plans in anticipation.[^7][^11] That backdrop supports higher yields and a general risk off bias, which then feeds into ETF outflows and lower spot demand for BTC.

Taken together, these macro and regulatory drivers explain why, when Bitcoin slipped from the low 80k region into the mid 70k area, there were not enough new buyers to absorb selling without a major liquidation event.

The last 13 hours are part of a larger adjustment where institutional flows, rates expectations and regulatory noise reduced the “safety net” under BTC, so a technical break triggered an outsized move.

Technical Rebound In A Weak Tape

The 3.45 percentage point move you are asking about is occurring after that initial flush and looks more like a technical relief bounce than a reaction to a fresh headline.

1. Several technical commentaries put immediate support for Bitcoin around $74,000–$74,500, with resistance in the $76,000–$77,500 band. They describe BTC as in a corrective phase after failing near $82,000–$83,000, but note oversold short term conditions and the potential for a relief bounce if $74k holds.[^3][^12]
2. Intraday reports show BTC dipping as low as roughly $74,300–$74,500, then trading back toward the mid 75k range and briefly higher, with analysts framing moves above $74,800–$75,500 as improving near term momentum even though the broader structure remains fragile.[^3][^13] Social posts mirror this, noting moves from about $74.2k back toward $76k later in the day.[^14]
3. At the market wide level, total crypto market cap is modestly up over the last 24 hours, and BTC dominance is roughly flat around 60 percent, suggesting this is a broad crypto correction and bounce rather than a Bitcoin specific story.[^15] Social sentiment on crypto as a whole sits near neutral, not at an extreme panic or euphoria, which is consistent with a market digesting a sharp move rather than reacting to a single new shock.

In other words, most of the “cause” for the move was front loaded into the prior 24 hours: ETF outflows, macro jitters, the SEC tokenization headline, and then the liquidation wave. The last 13 hours reflect the aftermath, where:

1. Forced sellers have largely been flushed out.
2. Price is testing and holding a well watched support region around $74k–$75k.
3. Short term traders are buying the dip and covering shorts, generating a modest percentage rebound that your interface reports as a 3.45 percentage point move.

The 13 hour move is best seen as a reflexive bounce inside a broader downtrend, driven by positioning and technical levels more than by any new, discrete catalyst during that exact window.

Conclusion

Bitcoin’s 3.45 percentage point move over the last 13 hours sits on top of a larger, news catalyzed correction. The initial drop was set off by weakening spot and ETF demand, macro and regulatory concerns, and a crowded long side that produced a large liquidation cascade. Once price reached a dense support area around the mid 70k region and leverage was flushed, BTC bounced, creating the intraday move you observed.

If ETF outflows persist, yields stay elevated, or new negative headlines emerge, this relief move could fade. If, instead, flows stabilise and BTC continues to hold above the 74k support band, this episode may be remembered as a sharp but contained deleveraging event rather than the start of a deeper breakdown.

Confidence: Medium, because while the liquidation and macro or regulatory links are well documented, attributing an exact 13 hour move always involves some uncertainty around intraday positioning and flows that are not fully observable.

As of 23 May 2026 using CMC market overview, CMC live price context, news articles, and posts from X.

[^1]: Bitcoin & Altcoins Crash Today - long liquidations drive sell off [^2]: Bitcoin price drop below $75K exposes the demand fracture behind crypto’s $941M liquidation wave [^3]: Bitcoin price analysis - BTC risks deeper correction below $74K [^4]: Crypto market sees $103M in futures liquidations in one hour [^5]: Bitcoin price drop below $75K and weakening ETF demand [^6]: [Bitcoin dives below $75K as crypto liquidations near $1B,