Bitcoin falls below $113,000! The largest options expiry in history triggers panic selling, XRP and meme coins become "disaster zones".

The cryptocurrency market was hit hard on September 22, with mainstream tokens such as Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Ripple (XRP), Solana (SOL), and Cardano (ADA) experiencing a big dump, leading to over $1.7 billion in long and short positions being liquidated. Behind this sudden market crash are the soaring global bond yields, Japan's government bonds reaching a 17-year high, and the triple blow of the largest ever $23 billion cryptocurrency options approaching expiration. Analysts warn that this may just be the beginning of a larger-scale adjustment.

Market Bloodbath: Nearly 1 Billion USD Long Positions Liquidated in Just One Hour

The cryptocurrency market has experienced an astonishing crash in the past 24 hours, with the total market capitalization plummeting from a recent high of 4.10 trillion dollars to 3.89 trillion dollars. The Fear and Greed Index also rapidly dropped from last week's 53 (neutral) to 45 (fear), reflecting a sharp deterioration in investor sentiment.

The liquidation data is even more shocking:

(Source: Coinglass)

· In the past 24 hours, nearly 1.6 billion dollars of long positions and 85 million dollars of short positions were liquidated.

· In just one hour, over $966 million in long positions were liquidated.

· A total of 410,000 traders have faced liquidation.

The largest single liquidation order occurred on a CEX exchange, with a BTC-USDT swap trade losing as much as 12.74 million dollars.

Mainstream Crypto Assets Performance is Poor:

· Bitcoin (BTC) fell over 3%, dropping below $113,000

· Ethereum (ETH) big dump 7%, fall to $4,150

· XRP, SOL, ADA, and Hyperliquid (HYPE) fell by 6-10%

· Meme coins are even more severely affected, with Dogecoin (DOGE), Shiba Inu (SHIB), and Pepe Coin (PEPE) all experiencing a fall of over 10%.

Global Bond Market Turmoil: Japan's Government Bond Yields Hit 17-Year High

(Source: Bloomberg)

Behind this cryptocurrency market crash is the severe volatility in the global bond market. The yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury bond has risen for the fifth consecutive day to around 4.15%, the U.S. dollar index (DXY) has surpassed 97.80, and the Japanese bond market has seen astonishing changes.

Japanese Prime Minister candidate Hayashi Yoshimasa publicly supports the Bank of Japan's interest rate hike strategy, causing the yields on 10-year and 2-year government bonds in Japan to rise to their highest levels since 2008. This development has triggered a chain reaction in global financial markets, particularly impacting high-risk assets such as Crypto Assets.

Bloomberg Industry Research senior strategist Mike McGlone issued a warning that, in light of the recent surge in hedging sentiment, crypto assets and Bitcoin may signal a risk asset bubble larger than the internet stocks of 1999. This statement has further intensified market panic.

The largest options expiration in history: $23 billion in market pressure

(Source: Deribit)

Another significant risk facing the crypto assets market is the upcoming "Triple Witching Day"—when weekly, monthly, and quarterly options expire simultaneously. According to on-chain data, over $17.5 billion in BTC options and $5.5 billion in Deribit options will expire this Friday, totaling up to $23 billion, marking the largest scale in the history of the crypto assets market.

It is worth noting that the highest prices of Bitcoin and Ethereum are $110,000 and $3,700 respectively, which means that a large number of options contracts will face the risk of expiring out of the money.

On-chain options data shows that this large-scale expiration could lead to a further fall in Bitcoin prices to $105,500. Furthermore, according to Glassnode's data, the risk of profit-taking has significantly increased as 95% of Bitcoin holders are currently still in profit.

Market Outlook: Short-term Volatility and Long-term Trends

Although current market sentiment is pessimistic, some analysts point out that this adjustment may be a healthy market behavior. After Bitcoin has risen over 150% this year, a short-term pullback helps to digest the overvaluation and lays the foundation for the next round of increases.

However, investors need to closely monitor the following key factors:

Global bond market trends: Further increases in U.S. and Japanese government bond yields may continue to exert pressure on the crypto assets market.

Market reaction after Options expiration: After the expiration of Options on September 27, the market may see a rebound or further fall.

Institutional capital flow: ETF capital inflows or outflows will be an important indicator of market confidence.

Macroeconomic data: The upcoming Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) inflation data will affect the market's expectations of the Federal Reserve's future monetary policy.

For investors, this market adjustment provides an opportunity to reassess risk tolerance and investment strategies. In a highly volatile market environment, the importance of risk management and asset allocation is self-evident.

As the cryptocurrency market enters a new period of volatility, investors should remain calm, avoid panic decisions, and closely monitor changes in the global macroeconomic environment and market technical indicators.