Short squeeze across top 500 cryptocurrencies triggers $200M liquidations as Bitcoin leads rebound

On Wednesday, crypto futures and perpetual contracts linked to the 500 largest cryptocurrencies saw around $200 million of short positions liquidated, marking the biggest squeeze since the Oct. 10 sell-off. Bitcoin and Ether led the move, with Bitcoin also outperforming the US dollar in early 2026 as geopolitical tensions and questions over Federal Reserve independence intensified.