Crypto Market’s Massive Meltdown: What We Know and What’s Next

The events that transpired in the past day or so are not unusual in the ever-volatile cryptocurrency market, but they tend to harm certain traders more than others. While many felt the pain of being liquidated, others seem to profit.

In the span of just 12 hours or so, the entire market went from a capitalization worth $4.120 trillion on TradingView to $3.3 trillion, which meant a wipe-out of almost $900 billion. This pushed the metric down to its lowest levels since July, erasing months of gains, before it recovered to $3.670 trillion as of press time.

What We Know

Whenever such crashes occur, the cryptocurrency community rushes to offer different views on the matter, trying to explain what happened and provide some insights on what might follow. The current collapse is no different, as Crypto X is full of various opinions and speculations on the matter, especially since it became the single-largest liquidation event in the digital asset market.

The most talked-about reason is, surprise, surprise, US President Donald Trump. In what felt like a deja vu, the POTUS alleged China of deception in certain areas and threatened to impose a new set of tariffs on Friday, which triggered the first wave of market-wide declines. He made it official a few hours later, confirming that these tariffs will begin on November 1.

The Kobeissi Letter, though, indicated that markets were “LOOKING” for a good reason to correct, given the massive amount of leverage, especially in crypto.

The blatant reality:

Heading into President Trump’s 100% China tariff announcement, markets were LOOKING for a catalyst to pull back on.

Leverage was through the roof and we had not seen a 2%+ decline in the S&P 500 for 6 months.

President Trump’s post became THE REASON to…

— The Kobeissi Letter (@KobeissiLetter) October 11, 2025

Bull Theory alleged that one of Bitcoin’s oldest wallets might have known what was about to happen as they opened big short positions on BTC and ETH a day before the announcement and doubled down as events started to unfold. They closed all shorts with a profit of roughly $200 million in just a day.

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Bull Theory added that this wasn’t a retail-driven dump, as it has been on some occasions in the past. Instead, they noted that it “felt structural, as if a fund or a desk was forced to unwind positions all at once.”

What’s Next?

Naturally, after trying to explain what happened, the next step is to offer a prediction of what’s to come. The majority of the crypto community seemed adamant that this is a proper buy-the-dip moment, as similar crashes are typically followed by large moves in the opposite direction.

“So yes, the headlines scream Market Crash. But zoom out the structure didn’t break. It just reset. The whales already took their entry. Retail panic is peaking. And history says, that’s exactly when the next leg begins,” said Bull Theory.

CZ concurred, indicating that this could be the next “COVID crash,” when BTC dumped to $4,000 but exploded in the following months.

👇 https://t.co/4O6i3MsfIA

— CZ 🔶 BNB (@cz_binance) October 11, 2025

However, Crypto Bully outlined a different projection, which is a lot more painful if Trump proceeds with the tariffs:

“- Unless Trump changes his statements immediately on Monday, this will not be a V reversal. Most alts with 50-70% wicks will bleed down and fill them or partially fill it before reversal.”

Different Perspective

While most are focused on price drops, reasoning, and future behavior, Cobie highlighted a different perspective on the situation. The popular X user believes such collapses are a perfect example of why investors should avoid taking leveraged positions, as they can wipe out years of gains.

Instead, they need to focus on building a long-term portfolio by holding only assets that they are bullish on and believe in. This means steer clear of speculative tokens that only chase hype without actual utility.

“When everyone is making hilarious amounts of money I am always tempted to start using leverage again. It is almost impossible to fight the feeling that you’re not making enough, or everyone else is outpacing you. Good reminder that fighting that feeling and avoid the wipeouts is worth it in the end. Don’t let a leverage blowup dictate your long-term views. The future is bright, good things to come, patience is rewarded.”

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