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|3 min ReadTariff Shock Triggers 10/11 Crypto Liquidation Record
Lucca Menezes
Senior Analyst
Published
Jan 16, 2026
The 10/11 flush rewrites the tape
By 08:00 on October 11, crypto saw $19.1 billion liquidated in 24 hours. More than 1.6 million traders wiped. A ten-year record for leveraged crypto trading.
Bitcoin didn’t fall out of the blue. The slide started at 22:00 on October 10, from 117,000. No headlines. Just a nameless whale on Hyperliquid loading 1.1 billion in BTC and ETH shorts.117,000. No headlines. Just a nameless whale on Hyperliquid loading
At ~05:00, the real move hit. In thirty brutal minutes BTC dropped almost 1 percent per minute. At 05:19, one candle nuked more than 4 percent. Nearly 5,000 erased in sixty seconds. The wick bottomed near102,000. A 12 percent overnight drawdown on a $2 trillion asset.5,000 erased in sixty seconds. The wick bottomed near
The spark and the shark
Then the headline finally landed. Trade war back on. The U.S. president said 100 percent tariffs on China start November 1. Late news, but it explained the cross-asset bleed.
Alts bled deepest. SUI had hovered around 3.5. It wicked to 0.55. WLD, the AI leader, stabbed from 3.5. It wicked to 1.4 to 0.26. Even top-ten DOGE printed a 50 percent drawdown. Small caps? Mostly dust.1.4 to
And the whale? Cold. Precise. He sized
30 million down, took profit into the cascade, doubled his capital in under twenty hours, and left with
30 million day. No victory lap. No name. Just execution.The broader hit—and the setup
This wasn’t just crypto. October 10 U.S. close: S&P 500 down 182.61 points, off 2.71 percent, the biggest weekly drop since May. Nasdaq slid 3.5 percent, the worst single day since April 10. Hang Seng futures fell 5 percent. FTSE A50 night session dropped 4.26 percent. Cliff after cliff.
Only gold held bid. That rally was the warning. When trillions chase safety, they speak first. We ignored it.
Here’s the truth. Markets don’t care about your feelings. They punish the over-levered and pay the patient. Respect risk. Keep powder dry. But don’t hide. Dislocations like 10/11 are where new legends seed positions. The whale showed the blueprint. Size smart. Act before the crowd. Get paid while they panic.
The bull market won’t carry everyone. It never does. Control risk. Protect principal. Then step back into the fire. Opportunity doesn’t ring a bell. It drops a wick.
Disclaimer: This document is intended for informational and entertainment purposes only. The views expressed in this document are not, and should not be taken as, investment advice or recommendations. Recipients should do their own due diligence, taking into account their specific financial circumstances, investment objectives and risk tolerance, which are not considered here, before investing. This document is not an offer, or the solicitation of an offer, to buy or sell any of the assets mentioned.