Whale Liquidations Hit BTC, ETH and SOL Amid Risk Events
March 26 triggered major crypto liquidations as leveraged positioning met a shift in market sentiment. Whale liquidations in Bitcoin and Ethereum led to large holders being forced out during a fast price move.
According to on-chain monitoring, a whale wallet starting with “0x965” exited 125 BTC when BTC briefly fell to about $69,500. The largest single liquidation in that sequence reached $6.95 million. The same wallet also saw two ETH long liquidations totaling 2,647 ETH (about $5.59 million). Across these waves, more than $14.2 million was wiped out, with a realized loss near $270,000 remaining after BTC/ETH positions were cleared. However, the wallet still held a $4.64 million HYPE long with a liquidation level around $38.1.
In Ethereum, “Big Brother” Huang Licheng (cited via on-chain data) had an ETH long liquidated after price dropped below $2,100, then immediately opened a new ETH long using 25x leverage. Total losses on these trades were reported above $30.7 million, highlighting how whale liquidations can rapidly compound under leverage.
On Solana, a whale wallet beginning “0xaed0” closed a $9.34 million SOL short for a small gain, then opened 440+ new SOL short positions at an average entry near $89, signaling renewed bearish exposure.
Broader sentiment risks also rose: AXIOS reported the Pentagon is considering a limited but forceful strike against Iran (“bloody nose” operation). Traders also look ahead to an April 21, 2026 Hong Kong event on AI agents taking on on-chain authority.
Bearish
This is likely bearish in the short term because whale liquidations typically force selling and can amplify volatility, especially when leverage is high. The article documents over $14.2M wiped across BTC/ETH liquidations and additional large losses tied to leveraged ETH longs, which suggests crowded or fragile positioning. On SOL, the pattern of closing one short then opening 440+ new SOL shorts at scale reinforces negative near-term positioning.
Geopolitical escalation risk (a potential “bloody nose” strike) can further suppress risk appetite, often leading traders to reduce exposure to higher-beta assets like crypto. Similar episodes—sharp liquidations followed by macro risk headlines—have historically produced quick downside momentum and wider spreads until leverage is flushed.
Longer term, if liquidations clear overleveraged players, the market can stabilize once forced sellers are absorbed. Still, the combination of active whale risk-taking and renewed bearish SOL structuring implies traders may remain cautious and wait for confirmation before turning decisively bullish.