$100B Erased From Crypto in Hours: Was Bitcoin Crash Coordinated?

Bitcoin plunges $3,600 amid tariff fears and massive liquidations. Here’s what analysts point to and what might really have happened.

Bitcoin dropped sharply over the weekend, shedding $3,600 in value as geopolitical tensions rattled markets. The leading cryptocurrency now trades at $92,589, down 2.58% in 24 hours.

Over $546 million in long positions were wiped out. The market saw $130 billion erased from the total crypto market cap in just 90 minutes.

Market-Wide Liquidations Trigger Sell-Off

According to DeFiTracer, major players dumped billions in Bitcoin during the crash. Insiders sold 22,918 BTC while exchanges joined the exodus.

🚨 BREAKING 🚨

HERE’S WHY CRYPTO MARKET IS DUMPING RIGHT NOW:

INSIDERS SOLD 22,918 BTC
COINBASE SOLD 2,417 BTC
BYBIT SOLD 3,339 BTC
BINANCE SOLD 2,301 BTC
WINTERMUTE SOLD 4,191 BTC

WHALES AND EXCHANGES SOLD OVER $4B $BTC IN THE LAST HOUR

THIS IS PURE COORDINATED DUMP!! 👀 pic.twitter.com/QoCcyEZbMM

— ᴛʀᴀᴄᴇʀ (@DeFiTracer) January 19, 2026

Coinbase offloaded 2,417 BTC. Bybit sold 3,339 BTC. Binance moved 2,301 BTC, and market maker Wintermute dumped 4,191 BTC.

DeFiTracer called it “pure coordinated dump,” claiming whales and exchanges sold over $4 billion in Bitcoin within an hour.

Watcher. Guru reported $100 billion vanished from the crypto market cap in 12 hours. Ethereum fell 3.19% while Bitcoin dropped 2.65% during the period.

CoinGecko data shows Bitcoin’s 24-hour trading volume hit $37.6 billion. Despite the recent drop, BTC remains up 0.98% over the past week.

Trade War Fears Spark Volatility

Analyst Wise Advice linked the crash to escalating trade tensions. President Trump’s tariff threats against European nations sparked immediate market reaction.

The EU reportedly prepared $100 billion in retaliatory measures. The announcement came amid Trump’s controversial statements about Greenland.

U.S. futures opened in the red. Risk assets across the board took a hit. The crypto market absorbed the shock through massive liquidations.

Wise Advice emphasized this wasn’t a crypto-specific weakness. Instead, geopolitics and overleveraged positions created the perfect storm.

🚨 THIS WASN’T A RANDOM DUMP

Here’s what actually triggered it:

• EU prepping $100B in retaliation against the U.S.
• Sparked by Trump’s threats linked to Greenland
• Trade war risk suddenly back on the table
• U.S. futures opened red
• $BTC down $3,600
• $546M longs… pic.twitter.com/E5gRetWblz

— Wise Advice (@wiseadvicesumit) January 19, 2026

Bitcoin Price Analysis Points to Bull Trap

Trader Philakone drew parallels between current price action and 2022’s crash. His analysis highlights a potential bull trap at the 38.2% Fibonacci level.

Bitcoin recently tested $94,206 before rejection. The pattern mirrors 2022 when BTC hit $46,000 at the same technical level before plunging to $16,000.

That crash coincided with the FTX collapse and Federal Reserve tightening. However, community responses note key differences in current macro conditions.

Some traders point to stealth quantitative easing signals. Others remain cautious given high volatility and leverage in the system.

The liquidation cascade suggests overleveraged traders fueled the dump. Market makers and exchanges appeared to front-run the move.

Bitcoin now faces critical support levels. Traders watch for potential further downside or recovery bounce.