Highlights
- Bitcoin broke above $78,000, up 0.98% on the day, while Ether topped $2,500, up 2.43%, as crypto markets absorbed August's CPI print.
- Roughly $130 million was liquidated from the crypto market within a single 60-minute window around the data release.
- Laibit mining pool founder Jiang Zhuoer exited 100% of his BTC position at $77,226, days after re-entering following an earlier exit at $82,050.
- The moves track the same whipsaw seen in gold, bonds and equities as traders repriced Fed rate-hike odds for next week's meeting.
- Crypto's reaction underscores its continued correlation to macro rate expectations rather than independent price discovery on CPI day.
Bitcoin and Ether Push Higher Through the Volatility
Bitcoin pushed above $78,000 on Friday, up 0.98% on the day, while Ether climbed past $2,500, a 2.43% daily gain, as crypto markets absorbed the shock of August's US CPI report alongside stocks, bonds and gold. The moves came with real pain for leveraged traders: roughly $130 million was liquidated from the crypto market within a single 60-minute window as the data hit the wires and Fed rate-hike odds for next week's meeting jumped to roughly 90%. The volatility also caught out at least one high-profile trader, as Laibit mining pool founder Jiang Zhuoer exited his entire Bitcoin position at $77,226, just days after re-entering the market following an earlier exit near $82,050.
A Miner's Second Exit in a Volatile Month
The $130 million liquidation figure captures only a narrow window immediately around the release, meaning the day's total toll on leveraged long and short positions was almost certainly higher once the broader whipsaw in Treasury yields and gold worked through crypto derivatives desks. Bitcoin's break above $78,000 puts it back near levels traders have flagged as a psychologically important line, with long-term holders accumulating while more cautious traders eye $74,000 as a downside target if rate-hike bets keep building.
Jiang Zhuoer's trade adds a concrete data point to the volatility. The mining pool founder had already sold his entire BTC position once this month, exiting near $82,050 and publicly flagging $70,000-$72,000 as his next area of interest, only to re-enter the market in the days that followed. Friday's second exit, at $77,226, roughly splits the difference between those two levels and suggests even traders with a defined thesis are struggling to hold conviction through a week this volatile.
Related: Bitcoin Crashes Below $77,000 as Hot PPI Triggers $190M in Liquidations
Correlation to Macro Still Dominates
The muted scale of Friday's liquidations, relative to prior CPI- and PPI-driven shocks this year, suggests crypto positioning had already de-risked somewhat heading into the report. Bitcoin's advance to $78,000 also came without a sharp spike in large exchange deposits, a sign the move up was driven more by short covering and macro relief than fresh distribution from large holders. Still, the reaction shows crypto remains tightly tethered to the same rate-expectation math driving Treasury yields and gold: when the CPI print's hotter core reading pushed Fed hike odds toward 90%, Bitcoin and Ether initially wobbled alongside stocks before following the broader market's reversal higher.
That correlation cuts both ways. A 30-year Treasury yield that broke above 5.4% on the same day raises the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding assets and tightens financing conditions across the leveraged positions crypto derivatives desks carry, a headwind that could reassert itself if next week's Fed decision confirms a hike. For now, the combination of an in-line headline CPI number and a market already braced for a hawkish outcome left room for Bitcoin and Ether to grind higher even as $130 million in positions were forced out.
What to Watch Into the Fed Decision
The next major catalyst is the Federal Reserve's policy meeting, which concludes Wednesday, September 16, with Chair Warsh's committee expected to decide on what would be the first rate hike in three years. Traders positioning around $78,000 will be watching whether Bitcoin can hold the level through the decision or retreats toward the $74,000 zone that more cautious analysts have flagged as a floor. Jiang Zhuoer's repeated in-and-out trading around the $77,000-$82,000 range offers a rough map of where conviction currently sits among experienced market participants: confident enough to buy dips, but not yet willing to hold through a Fed decision this uncertain.
FAQ
How high did Bitcoin and Ether trade after the CPI report?
Bitcoin broke above $78,000, up 0.98% on the day, while Ether topped $2,500, up 2.43%, as crypto markets absorbed the CPI-driven macro volatility.
How much crypto was liquidated after the CPI release?
Roughly $130 million was liquidated from the crypto market within a single 60-minute window as traders repriced Fed rate-hike odds following the data.
Who is Jiang Zhuoer and what did he do?
Jiang Zhuoer, founder of the Laibit mining pool, sold his entire Bitcoin position at $77,226, his second full exit this month after previously selling near $82,050 and re-entering the market.
Why does crypto still move with Treasury yields and Fed odds?
Bitcoin and Ether remain correlated to broader rate expectations because higher yields raise the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding assets and tighten financing conditions on leveraged crypto positions.
