Crypto Markets Today: Bitcoin Nears June Low as $1.4B in Liquidations Rock Altcoins

Market Overview - The crypto market experienced a significant sell-off, with Bitcoin (BTC) nearing its lowest level since June and Ether (ETH) trading at $3,480, the lowest since August, resulting in approximately $1.4 billion in liquidations across derivatives exchanges [1][2] Dollar Strength Impact - The sell-off was partly driven by the strength of the US dollar, with the DXY index reaching 100 for the first time since July, up from 96.2 in September, as analysts predict a slowdown in the Federal Reserve's rate-cutting cycle, leading to bearish trends in risk assets like Bitcoin [2] Derivatives Positioning - Volmex's Bitcoin Volatility Index (BVIV) is rising, indicating expected price turbulence, while BTC's spot price has shown a negative correlation with volatility over the past year, suggesting potential price weakness despite rising volatility [3] - Open interest (OI) in ZEC remains high at around 1.59 million ZEC, but funding rates have turned bearish, indicating some traders are shorting futures against long spot positions [3] - On the CME, BTC and ETH futures are showing diverging trends, with ether futures seeing record high OI, while BTC options indicate a bias for puts across all time frames, reflecting ongoing downside concerns [3] Altcoin Market Performance - The altcoin market faced significant declines, with several tokens dropping over 15%, leading to a $1.37 billion wave of liquidations, particularly affecting HyperLiquid rival aster (ASTER), which fell 18% [3] - Notable tokens like XRP are returning to critical support levels, while Solana (SOL) and BNB (BNB) have reached new lows [3] - Privacy coins such as Monero (XMR) and Zcash (ZEC) have outperformed the broader market, with DCR up 146% and DASH up 65%, indicating a potential rotation of traders away from weaker assets [4]