Ethereum Price Slides as Hot U.S. CPI Sparks $106M in Binance Long Wipeout

Ethereum price fell toward $2,350 on Oct. 15 after stronger-than-expected U.S. inflation triggered selling across cryptocurrency markets. The decline forced leveraged traders to close substantial bullish positions.

CryptoQuant analyst Darkfost reported more than $106 million in Ethereum long liquidations on Binance within one hour. Meanwhile, Santiment data showed that traders had maintained substantial futures exposure before the sell-off.

U.S. spot Ethereum exchange-traded funds also recorded renewed withdrawals, adding another source of market pressure.

Hot U.S. CPI Triggers $106M in Binance Long Liquidations

U.S. consumer prices increased 0.6% in September, compared with a 0.4% monthly rise in August. Economists had expected a 0.5% increase. Annual inflation reached 3.7%, up from 3.4% in August, while core inflation rose to 2.6% from 2.4%.

The stronger reading prompted traders to reassess the Federal Reserve’s interest rate outlook. Gasoline prices rose 34.2% year over year, while fuel oil prices increased 74.2%. Shelter costs climbed 0.4% in September, and airline fares advanced 1.2%.

Ethereum price dropped from roughly $2,500 to $2,350 following the CPI release. Darkfost reported that Binance recorded its largest hourly ETH long liquidation event in six months. More than $106 million in leveraged bullish positions closed within an hour as prices declined. Liquidations occur when an exchange closes positions that no longer meet margin requirements.

ETH long liquidation | Source: CryptoQuant

Santiment put Ethereum liquidations near $283 million across exchanges over 24 hours. Bitcoin recorded approximately $196 million during the same period. Darkfost also reported that Ethereum futures trading volume stood at roughly nine times spot volume, leaving a large share of activity concentrated in derivatives markets.

Ethereum Open Interest Remains Stable

Santiment reported an 11% decline in Ethereum’s dollar-denominated open interest between October 4 and October 14. ETH price also fell about 11% during that period. The matching declines matter because exchanges value outstanding futures positions in dollars using the underlying asset’s market price.

Measured in ETH rather than dollars, open interest stood at 6.23 million coins on October 4 and again on October 14. Positions fluctuated between 5.97 million and 6.47 million ETH throughout the ten days. The figures indicate that the lower dollar value largely reflected the price decline, rather than a comparable reduction in outstanding ETH contracts.

The difference separates changes in contract value from changes in the amount of cryptocurrency represented by open positions. Santiment’s data covered the period before the CPI-driven liquidations, which occurred after the October 14 reading.

The figures therefore do not measure how much exposure traders held following the selloff. The next Federal Reserve decision on interest rates is scheduled for October 28.

Ethereum ETFs Record $129.5M in Outflows

Meanwhile, U.S. spot Ethereum exchange-traded funds recorded approximately $129.5 million in net outflows on October 14, according to Farside data cited by Santiment. Separate fund figures put BlackRock’s iShares Ethereum Trust withdrawals at about $110 million that day. The outflows followed a $24.8 million net inflow on October 13.

ETH ETF | Source: SoSoValue

Bearish positions also attracted attention as ETH crypto declined. Crypto analyst Daan Crypto Trades reported rising short exposure following the inflation announcement. Onchain Lens separately identified roughly $75 million in short positions associated with Wintermute on Hyperliquid, including Ethereum exposure.

Ethereum traded near $2,354 after the decline, below its lower daily Bollinger Band around $2,363. The middle band stood near $2,595, while the upper band approached $2,828.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial or investment advice.