- Crypto markets face $1.7B liquidations as Bitcoin drops below $112K before rebounding.
- Traders await Powell’s speech to see if Q3 ends with stability or sharp volatility ahead.
- Bitcoin’s $110K–$112K support zone may decide a rebound to $120K or a fall toward $95K.
Crypto markets reeled on Monday as $1.70 billion in leveraged positions were liquidated, triggering one of the largest sell-offs in recent months. Bitcoin briefly slipped below $112,000 before staging a small recovery. Traders are now focused on Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell’s upcoming speech, scheduled on September 23, to set the tone for the final week of Q3 and shape the path for Q4.
Bitcoin has extended its losses in recent sessions, adding another 2.48% decline. According to Coinglass data, long futures liquidations reached $280.24 million in the past 24 hours, revealing the fragile sentiment with forced selling. Liquidity maps showed heavy bids clustered between $111,500 and $110,000, raising the risk of further drops.
Bitcoin Tests $112K Support Amid Mixed Signals
Analyst Ali Chart identified an inverse head and shoulders pattern that was forming around $112,800, and if it persists, it can lead to a target of $129,000–$130,000. But cycle analysis contrasting current trading with 2021 implies that Bitcoin is still in a corrective phase. So these mixed signals still have markets, hanging on a thin line.
Source: X
Its rising trendline from $75,000 lows is now here to face its initial serious test. If the $110,000–$112,000 area can be maintained as support, for example, a return of buying profits into a short-covering rally towards $118,000–$120,000.
Bearish momentum is building across crypto markets, as on-chain data show signs of investors taking profits. Santiment says Bitcoin’s trading volume skyrocketed 90% in the last 24 hours and has hit $45 billion.
Source: Santiment
Reduction in prices associated with increased volume is already an indication of strong selling pressure and people leaving the counter. This increases the possibility of longer liquidations when holders sell off in expectation that the decline will continue.
Crypto markets got no boost from last week’s Federal Reserve rate cut. The response cast doubt on the durability of the bullish cycle. The sentiment related to easing has faltered. Now, traders see Powell’s comments as a potential hope. His speech would further be taken as either supporting risk assets with a dovish tone or putting markets under pressure with a hawkish one.
Related: Michael Saylor Anticipates Digital Gold Rush for Bitcoin
Powell’s Speech Puts Crypto on Edge
As Q3 nears its end, expectations for volatility are rising. Bulls need Powell to provide the confidence that Bitcoin can defend support. Bears caution that a hawkish turn could unleash another round of liquidations. Optimist-driven leveraged positions are already getting squeezed. The response to Powell talking on the subject would probably determine short-term price direction for Bitcoin and crypto markets.
Altcoins followed Bitcoin down during the slide on Monday. Selling spread to larger tokens, exacerbating weakness, swept across the broader market. Liquidity is scarce, and confidence is dampened. The main driver has been the macro signal, with Powell’s comments being watched more closely than anything token-specific.
If Powell suggests a dovish stance and Bitcoin holds key support, consolidation could be expected. Or if Powell turns more hawkish, volatility could easily kick higher into Q4. Traders are bracing for either outcome. The equilibrium of optimism and fear would be determined by how markets read Powell’s signal.
Q3 will end within days, but the outlook is filled with uncertainty. Powell’s remarks constitute the fulcrum. They would decide whether this chapter finished in calm or plunged into the kind of turbulence that sets the tone for the first weeks of Q4.
