Leverage, Strategy sale trigger near-7% June crypto crash
High futures leverage and Strategy’s first Bitcoin sale in years sparked a near-7% drop; BTC dipped below $66,000 and about $1.8 billion in positions were liquidated.
The crypto market fell nearly 7% over 24 hours into June 3, with Bitcoin briefly below $66,000 and an estimated $1.8 billion in leveraged positions liquidated. The decline began on June 1 and intensified on June 2.
Derivatives data showed elevated leverage before the drop. On June 2 the futures open-interest leverage ratio reached 2.63% and the perpetuals leverage ratio hit 2.48%, the highest readings since early October 2025. The average funding rate across exchanges rose to about 0.018 on June 2, the most positive single-day reading since early September. A positive funding rate means traders holding long positions paid periodic fees to short positions.
The immediate trigger came on June 1 when Strategy, the corporate Bitcoin holder led by Michael Saylor, disclosed a Bitcoin sale, its first in years. Analytics firm Santiment reported social sentiment flipped to “extreme fear” after the disclosure. With long positions crowded and funding elevated, the sale coincided with forced liquidations.
Spot flows to exchanges increased on June 2, with total inflows around 58,617 BTC, the largest single-day inflow since mid-April and higher than the roughly 46,527 BTC that moved to exchanges before the October 2025 crash. Wallets holding between 10 and 10,000 BTC sold about 24,602 BTC over the past week, an 18% reduction. Small holders added roughly 61 BTC in the same period.
The combined pressure produced a cascade of liquidations estimated at about $1.8 billion and pushed prices to levels near the October 10, 2025 liquidation event. Market participants noted the event followed a familiar pattern of crowded longs, positive funding and heavy exchange inflows.
CryptoQuant’s head of research, Julio Moreno, reported that Bitcoin demand was contracting at about 232,000 BTC per month and attributed the recent price correction to falling demand rather than movements in stocks or oil. Bitcoin accounted for roughly 58.4% of total crypto market value, and its decline coincided with losses across the broader market.
Market participants are watching whether leverage levels decline, funding rates ease and exchange inflows slow. Analysts are monitoring on-chain metrics — leverage ratios, funding rates and exchange flows — as the main indicators to follow in the days ahead.
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