Bitcoin broke above the $68,000 mark on Wednesday, August 19, 2026, triggering over $1 billion in short position liquidations in just one hour. This sharp surge forced traders betting on a price decline to cover their positions immediately.
Analyst Daan Crypto Trades described the movement as a massive squeeze that occurred after the price cleared a liquidation cluster at the $67,000 level. Market data showed a one-minute candle rising by about 4%. The size of this short-duration candle exceeded Bitcoin’s entire daily trading range over the past few weeks.
On-chain tracking platform @lookonchain detailed that short position liquidations reached $1.13 billion during that one-hour window. The largest loss affected wallet 0x8c96, which was forced to liquidate 1,800 BTC worth $117 million. Two other large wallets were also swept: 0x431f had 677 BTC liquidated worth $44 million, and 0x004e lost 500 BTC, or approximately $33 million.
Fuel Injection from the Bond Market
This price movement did not originate solely within the crypto market. The United States Department of the Treasury (US Treasury) announced plans to double the maximum size of its buybacks of long-term bonds maturing in 10 to 30 years. The upper limit of the market operations, effective September 9, will rise from $2 billion to at least $4 billion per operation.
Long-term bond yields dropped immediately following the announcement, followed by a weakening of the dollar. These macro conditions created a risk-on environment that favored crypto assets, in line with the strengthening of US stock indices.
Institutional capital inflows had already entered anticipating this move. Bitfinex exchange reports noted that spot Bitcoin ETFs in the US attracted $297.5 million in inflows on August 17 - the highest daily figure so far this month. The momentum continued with an additional $189.3 million on August 18, marking the first time since August 7 that inflows occurred for two consecutive days.
Wall Street crypto stocks responded in tandem. Strategy shares rose 12% and Coinbase climbed 9%. Both are among the most heavily shorted stocks on the market. According to the latest weekly filing documents, Strategy now holds 840,447 BTC along with $4.8 billion in cash. In another ecosystem, the BitMine entity was recorded as controlling 5.82 million ETH worth approximately $11.4 billion.
The Next Resistance Level
From a technical analysis perspective, the four-hour chart shows a double-bottom structure that formed between late July and mid-August near the $62,200 price. The neckline of this pattern lies around $65,400, a level that has now been successfully breached.
However, momentum indicators have entered the hot zone. The four-hour Relative Strength Index (RSI) reached 83.49, well above the overbought level of 70. The Chaikin Money Flow indicator also rose to a level of 0.26.
The temporary price peak or upper wick in the $69,500 range proves that sellers have responded to the rise above the $69,000 level. Independent analyst Zhang assesses that Bitcoin’s movement is starting to show signs of forming a price floor, but it is not yet a confirmed price floor. The real test is not how fast the price rises in an hour, but whether these numbers can withstand profit-taking pressure in the coming days.
Reported from crypto.news.
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Disclaimer: This article is for informational and educational purposes only, not financial advice. Cryptocurrency assets are highly volatile and carry significant risk. Always do your own research (DYOR) and never invest more than you can afford to lose.
