The cryptocurrency market suffered a brutal start to June. According to OKX market data, Bitcoin fell to $66,500 while Ethereum breached the critical $1,900 psychological level, tumbling 8% in 24 hours to $1,855. Solana (SOL) also slid to $73. The sell-off quickly spread across major coins, altcoins, and crypto-related stocks, putting the entire market under severe pressure.
Derivatives Market Sees Largest Liquidation Event Since February
The decline triggered the most extensive wave of forced liquidations since February. Over the past 24 hours, total liquidations across crypto derivatives markets exceeded $1.7 billion, with long positions accounting for the bulk of the losses. Specifically, Bitcoin-related long liquidations surpassed $1.5 billion, highlighting the high concentration and fragility of leveraged positions in the market.
Institutional Selling Leads the Plunge as ETF Outflows Hit Record Levels
This decline was not a simple spot market correction. Persistent institutional selling served as the core driver. Data shows that Bitcoin spot ETFs recorded a single-day net outflow of $483.8 million, and for the entire month of May, these ETFs saw cumulative net outflows of $2.3 billion—the largest monthly outflow since 2026. In contrast, March and April had registered net inflows of $1.32 billion and $1.97 billion, respectively. The sharp reversal in fund flows indicates that institutional selling far outpaces what price declines alone can explain. Moreover, the overall crypto market exhibited an 84% correlation with the Dow Jones Industrial Average, reinforcing the presence of common macro-level selling pressures.
Ethereum’s break below the $1,900 psychological barrier triggered a chain reaction. On major exchanges such as Bitstamp and Binance, the execution of automatic stop-loss orders combined with derivatives liquidations created a self-reinforcing downward spiral, significantly amplifying market panic.
HYPE Sets New All-Time High; ZEC’s Fundamentals Shine
Amid the broad market decline, Hyperliquid (HYPE) and Zcash (ZEC) emerged as rare bright spots. HYPE reached an all-time high of $75.51 on June 2, before pulling back to $68, roughly an 8% decline in 24 hours. However, it still posted a 15% gain over the past week. With a market cap of approximately $15.9 billion and a 24-hour trading volume of $1.54 billion, HYPE ranks 10th among all crypto assets. Against a backdrop of a 7.5% overall market decline, HYPE’s relative strength stood out prominently.
Zcash (ZEC), on the other hand, was the most dazzling contrarian performer during this turmoil. ZEC surged over 7% in the past 24 hours, touching an intraday high of $628, pushing its market cap to over $11 billion and temporarily claiming the 11th spot. The primary catalyst frequently cited was the ZEC Foundation’s Q1 report confirming that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) had closed its investigation with no enforcement action. Although this news was already released several weeks earlier, the market still interpreted it as a significant regulatory tailwind for a privacy coin long mired in uncertainty. More importantly, ZEC’s fundamentals have been steadily strengthening: its price rebounded from a low of $185 in February to a high of $688 in May, a gain exceeding 270%. Meanwhile, the number of shielded addresses surged from 1.47 million in 2024 to the current 5.11 million, indicating accelerating demand for on-chain privacy.
From a technical perspective, crypto analyst Ali Martinez noted that ZEC’s 12-hour chart has triggered a TD Sequential buy signal. If the price can hold the $500 support level, the next target points toward $642. Furthermore, governance voting for Zcash network upgrade NU7 is expected to commence in June 2026, and ongoing technical roadmap developments may continue to provide fundamental support for the price.
