Bitcoin outperforms amid heavy liquidations weighing on Ethereum, Solana, and Cardano

December 17, 2025

Risk appetite stayed low, and leveraged positions in cryptocurrencies were unwinding.

  • Bitcoin fell less than 1% even as total crypto market liquidations crossed $542 million.
  • Ethereum led liquidation activity with $134 million in forced unwinds.
  • Cardano posted the steepest drop among majors, falling over 5% in 24 hours.

Bitcoin (BTC) held up on Wednesday night despite the crypto market dropping around 1% over the past day and market capitalization was on the brink of falling below $3 trillion.

Bitcoin (BTC) fell 0.8% during the last 24 hours and was trading near $86,650. According to Coinglass data, forced unwinds totaled approximately $85 million on the last day. On Stocktwits, retail sentiment around Bitcoin remained at ‘extremely bearish’ territory, accompanied by ‘low’ levels of chatter.

Bitcoin’s price drop could be attributed to spot exchange-traded funds (ETFs) recording outflows of more than $277 million on Tuesday. According to SoSoValue data, Bitcoin spot ETFs have lost $435.94 million so far this month.

Binance Coin (BNB) followed, falling roughly 2.4% to around $846. Liquidations were minimal, totaling less than $0.2 million in the last 24 hours. On Stocktwits, retail sentiment around Binance coin remained in the ‘bearish’ zone, while chatter around the coin increased from ‘low’ to ‘normal’ levels. The price slip follows Tuesday’s announcement, in which Binance said it would offer rewards to help identify individuals behind fake listing agents and related scams, offering a $5 million bounty.

Ethereum (ETH) led in liquidations, totaling about $134 million over the past 24 hours, as ETH fell roughly 4.22% to around $2,838. Heavy liquidations reinforced Ethereum’s role as the primary venue for leveraged positioning and risk hedging. On Stocktwits, retail around Ethereum remained in the ‘extremely bearish’ territory, with ‘low’ levels of chatter over the past day.​

Ripple (XRP) fell roughly 4% to approximately $1.86. The move came at a period when futures activity was very low, with approximately $5 million in 24-hour liquidations. On Stocktwits, retail sentiment around XRP remained in the ‘bearish’ territory, with ‘low’ levels of chatter over the past day.

Dogecoin (DOGE) fell roughly 4.52% and is now worth around $0.126. DOGE lost more than $0.9 million in liquidations over the last day. On Stocktwits, retail sentiment around Dogecoin remained in ‘extremely bearish’ territory, accompanied by ‘low’ levels of chatter.

Solana (SOL) decreased by about 4.37% and is now trading at around $123.6. The selloff was followed by almost $21 million in liquidations, pointing to a continued unwind of leveraged positions rather than abrupt panic selling.

Cardano (ADA) was the largest loser among major tokens, falling approximately 5.16% to around $0.37, with its intraday low hitting $0.36. ADA experienced approximately $0.26 million in liquidations over the last 24 hours, indicating that the market is still de-risking rather than panic selling. On Stocktwits, the retail sentiment for Cardano remained in the ‘extremely bearish’ territory, with ‘low’ levels of chatter over the past day.

Across the broader crypto market, traders saw over $542.38 million in liquidations over the past 24 hours.

​Read also: Vitalik Buterin Pushes Back On Bernie Sanders’ Call To Pause AI Data Centres – Says Slowing AI Now Misses The Real Risk

For updates and corrections, email newsroom[at]stocktwits[dot]com.

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