Bitcoin dropped below the $60,000 level, with total liquidations reaching $1.5 billion. The move followed stronger-than-expected US labor data, which added pressure across risk assets and weakened expectations for Federal Reserve rate cuts. Crypto prices reacted quickly.
US payroll surprise adds pressure to risk assets
The US economy added 172,000 non-farm jobs in May, well above the market expectation of 85,000. The unemployment rate came in at 4.3%, while March and April payroll figures were revised higher by a combined 93,000. With labor conditions looking firmer than expected, traders scaled back hopes for easier monetary policy. After the release, Bitcoin traded near $61,884, down 2.54% over 24 hours, before slipping through the closely watched $60,000 mark.
Options market focuses on the $60,000 line
Jean-David Péquignot, chief commercial officer at Deribit, described $60,000 as a critical level in the Bitcoin options market. The report noted that market makers carrying short gamma exposure may respond to falling prices by selling spot Bitcoin or futures to hedge risk. That can intensify downside moves in a fragile tape. On Deribit alone, open interest in $60,000 strike put options stands above $1.2 billion, leaving the market exposed to extra hedging activity and fresh long liquidations if weakness continues.
Strategy faces deeper paper losses as debate widens
Peter Schiff argued that short-term support near $61,000 may not hold and said the decline could continue. He also said selling pressure in crypto and technology stocks is spreading into other markets, including precious metals. At the same time, institutional holder Strategy is under heavier strain. Michael Saylor called for unity across different parts of the Bitcoin community, while the company’s unrealized loss has climbed above $12.7 billion as Bitcoin moved below its average purchase price.
CryptoQuant CEO Ki Young Ju took a different angle. He said recent criticism should be aimed more at early large holders than at Saylor. According to Ju, old whale wallets sold about 1.24 million BTC to Saylor and ETFs over the past two years, while Strategy itself sold only 32 BTC during the same period.
On-chain metrics and moving averages show continued stress
Glassnode data shows that US government Bitcoin holdings, most of them seized from criminal proceeds, have fallen in value to $20.8 billion. That is close to half of the $40.7 billion peak recorded in October. On-chain valuation metrics are also under watch, with Bitcoin’s MVRV ratio down to 1.19. Levels below 1.0 are often associated with undervaluation, while higher readings tend to reflect broader profitability across the market.
Analysts are also tracking a recent crossover between the 4,000-day and 365-day moving averages, a signal the report linked to ongoing downside risk. At the same time, similar periods in earlier cycles have coincided with gradual accumulation by long-term holders. The $59,000 area is now the next major test. If Bitcoin falls again, hedging flows and forced liquidations may increase; a recovery would require BTC to reclaim the $65,000 resistance level.