Bitcoin slips below $83,000, wiping out nearly $42 million in longs before the US open

Bitcoin dropped below $83,000, and the traders betting on higher prices paid for it. Nearly $42 million in long positions were liquidated before US stock markets even opened. That early-morning wipeout was reportedly part of a bigger purge. Close to $696 million in positions were cleared out across a 24-hour window, mostly from longs. What actually happened The move came on October 8, 2026, according to research compiled on the event. Intraday lows were reported in a range between $82,880 and $83,500, depending on the venue and the data source. The dip did not last long. Bitcoin recovered to around $83,100 shortly afterward, putting it back above the line it had just fallen through. A liquidation, for the uninitiated, is what happens when a trader borrows money to amplify a bet and the market moves the wrong way. Once losses eat through the trader’s collateral, the exchange closes the position automatically. Nobody asks for permission. Those forced closures are sell orders in a long-heavy market. Sell orders push the price lower, which triggers more liquidations, which push the price lower still. The research describes this particular episode as a leverage flush rather than a respo...