Here's how market makers likely accelerated bitcoin's brutal crash to $60,000

Core Insights - Bitcoin (BTC) experienced a significant decline, dropping to nearly $60,000, which affected the broader crypto market and led to the loss of value for some trading funds [1] - The decline was attributed to macroeconomic factors and the actions of market makers, who play a crucial role in maintaining liquidity in trading [1][2] Market Dynamics - Market makers continuously post buy and sell orders, ensuring liquidity and smooth trading without significant price fluctuations [2] - They hedge their exposure to price volatility through buying and selling actual assets or related derivatives, which can sometimes exacerbate price movements [3] Options Market Influence - Between February 4 and February 7, Bitcoin's price fell from $77,000 to nearly $60,000, influenced by the options market where market makers were "short gamma" [3][4] - The presence of approximately $1.5 billion in negative options gamma between $75,000 and $60,000 contributed to the acceleration of Bitcoin's decline [5] Hedging Mechanism - Negative gamma indicates that options dealers must hedge in the same direction as the underlying price movement, leading to increased selling pressure as Bitcoin's price fell [6]