Leveraged crypto bulls paid a heavy price for betting on Washington. Nearly 100,000 traders were liquidated in the 24 hours after the Digital Asset Market CLARITY Act failed to clear the Sena
Leveraged crypto bulls paid a heavy price for betting on Washington.
Nearly 100,000 traders were liquidated in the 24 hours after the Digital Asset Market CLARITY Act failed to clear the Senate's 60-vote procedural hurdle, with total liquidations reaching approximately $480 million, according to CoinGlass data.
Long positions, bets that prices would rise, accounted for $363 million of the damage, while short positions made up just $114 million, showing just how one-sided positioning had become heading into Tuesday's vote.
Related: Analyst says XRP could be ready for a big move
Traders had spent the week leaning into optimism. Reports that President Donald Trump was open to concessions on the bill's ethics provisions pushed Bitcoin from about $77,000 on Monday to nearly $80,000 before the vote.
That unwind began roughly a day out, as signs emerged that Senate Democrats were not moving. Cloture ultimately failed 49-50, about ten votes shy of the threshold, with seven Democrats who had negotiated the text voting against it.
As reported earlier, a spokesperson for Lummis said Democrats had "not budged an inch," and Republicans dismissed the counterproposal outright.
With 53 Senate seats, Republicans needed at least seven Democratic votes to clear the threshold and didn't get them.
As per the data, Bitcoin briefly slipped below $75,000, its weakest level since late August, before steadying near $75,800. XRP was the worst performer among majors, down close to 10%.
U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs added to the pressure, shedding about $450 million on Tuesday in their heaviest single-day outflow since June.
The bill's collapse ends market structure legislation for 2026, but rulemaking continues. Both the SEC and CFTC have signaled they can advance crypto frameworks without Congress.
