Key Insights:
- Crypto market liquidations hit $322,000,000 in 24 hours.
- Bitcoin price is on the verge of breaking a 6-year Uptober cycle streak.
- BTC bulls are exhausted from the recent massive sell-off, but analysts raise hope.
The crypto market began another day of relatively big liquidations today, October 21, 2025. Notably, crypto market liquidations reached $322 million, with Bitcoin (BTC) contributing a major part of the brunt.
Bitcoin has broken a 6-year Uptober cycle, suggesting exhaustion from the bulls. Whether Bitcoin price will pick up steam for the remaining days in October is now the question circulating within the crypto community.
Crypto Market Liquidations Heatmap Outlook
According to CoinGlass data, the total liquidations across the crypto market over the past 24 hours come in at $322 million from 122,769 traders.
Long position holders saw the largest liquidations, which amounted to $249.05 million, while short traders were liquidated for $72.95 million.
The market recovery seen earlier this week, following a recent massive liquidation, has stalled. Major cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin and top market altcoins, have reversed recent gains and are currently on a downward spiral.
Notably, Bitcoin experienced total liquidations of $85.90 million, longs contributed $70.59 million, while $15.31 million came from shorts.
Ethereum, however, led the liquidation with $87.61 million; $65.95 million from longs, and the balance from short holders.
Other altcoins like Solana (SOL), Dogecoin (DOGE), and Binance (BNB) also faced massive liquidations.
Across exchanges, Binance faced the most liquidations, which amounted to more than $102 million. Bybit came second with liquidations of $91.02 million, followed by Hyperliquid with $40.40 million.
Bitcoin Breaks 6-year Uptober Cycle Trend
Amid the bearish market outlook, Bitcoin has broken a 6-year “Uptober rally” that began in 2019.
Essentially, the “Uptober” cycle trend is used to describe historically strong crypto markets’ performance in October. It is part of a broader pattern where BTC tends to rally in the fourth quarter (Q4) of bull market years.
According to Cryptorank data, BTC has recorded a streak of six consecutive positive Octobers from 2019 to 2024.
During this period, BTC posted average gains of approximately 20.64%. In October 2019, 2020, and 2021, BTC posted gains of 10.5%, 28.1%, and 40%, respectively.
The next three years, the coin continued in green, registering gains of 5.55% in October 2022, 28.5% in 2023, and 11.24% last year.
So far in October 2025, BTC has posted losses of 5.49%, breaking the 6-year green streak. At press time, the Bitcoin price has dropped 2.96% over the previous day to $107,785.
Can Bulls Make a Decisive Effort to Climb Higher?
While analyzing the price of Bitcoin, CryptoQuant analyst Axel Adler noted that BTC is still struggling to reverse the bearish momentum.
The analyst highlighted two specific bull attempts that fizzled out. The first attempt happened on October 13, and the second one occurred on October 20. This reinforces a bearish outlook amid weak sentiment and undervaluation signals.
As revealed by the Bitcoin Futures Flow Index posted by Axel, BTC failed to break above the $114,000 and $115,000 resistance levels, following the October 10 crash.
These attempts are classic bull traps, with initial bounces that attracted hopeful traders before sellers resumed control.
The analyst added that the index remains in bearish territory (<45), while the price trades below fair value (30-day). Axel explained that the chart signals weak futures flows and a clear loss of buyer initiative.
After the recent euphoria, crash, and failed rebounds, Axel highlighted that buyer momentum has depleted.
In a bullish case, the $106,500 support could spark a breakout $114,000. Also, a possible Federal Reserve rate cut may spark a relief rally to $120,000.
Meanwhile, CryptoQuant analyst Joao Wedson recently reiterated that the BTC cycle top prediction at $146,000 remains valid.