Bitcoin surged past the $71,000 threshold on Thursday, reflecting a broader market rally that coincided with renewed discussion surrounding the CLARITY Act. During the movement, short liquidations for Bitcoin surpassed $3 billion.
At press time, the Bitcoin price hovered near $71,730.46, marking an 11.43% increase over a 24-hour period. Data from CoinGlass indicated that total cryptocurrency liquidations reached $3.35 billion over 24 hours, affecting 189,216 traders. Short positions accounted for the vast majority of the losses, with $3.07 billion in shorts liquidated compared to $274.10 million in long positions. This imbalance forced numerous traders betting against Bitcoin to exit their positions as prices climbed.
Shorter timeframes reflected continued liquidation pressure. Four-hour liquidations totaled $385.20 million—including $356.79 million in shorts—while 12-hour liquidations reached $449.47 million, of which $378.82 million were shorts. Over the final hour of the reported timeframe, total liquidations hit $45.53 million, with shorts making up $40.30 million. Additionally, CoinGlass data pointed to a notable liquidation order on the Hyperliquid BTC-USD market valued at $48.80.
The recent price chart shows Bitcoin recovering from lows near $63,000. Following consolidation in the $64,000 to $65,000 range, the asset moved through $66,000 and $68,000 toward $70,000 on August 19. A subsequent breakout on August 20 pushed the price above $71,000.
The upward price movement followed a call by Trump for Congress to pass the CLARITY Act during a White House gathering that included crypto and financial industry leaders. The proposed legislation seeks to establish clearer definitions for digital assets and US regulatory authorities, though the Senate still faces a limited legislative calendar to address its passage.
Attendees at the White House event included Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong, Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev, Kraken co-CEO Arjun Sethi, ICE CEO Jeffrey Sprecher, SEC Chair Paul Atkins, CFTC Chair Mike Selig, and White House crypto advisor Patrick Witt.
Market participants also attributed the price surge to an announcement by the US Treasury regarding accelerated debt buybacks, which boosted investor risk appetite and contributed to the wider crypto market rally.
