Crypto bears just had one of their worst hours of 2026. Short positions worth $1.23 billion were liquidated in 60 minutes as Bitcoin (BTC) climbed 2.5% to near $68,424.

Three whale wallets on Hyperliquid, a decentralized derivatives exchange, absorbed $194 million of the damage. The forced buying added fuel to a rally that began in the bond market.

Inside the $1.23 Billion Crypto Short Liquidations

Total liquidations reached $1.31 billion in the hour, and shorts made up nearly all of it, per data from CoinGlass.

Bitcoin positions accounted for roughly $770 million of the wipeout,…