Bitcoin Falls Below $69,000 as Iran Radar Strike Claim and a Strong Dollar Trigger $1.4 Billion in Liquidations

Published November 13, 2026, 11:45 AM PKT. Based on reporting from CoinDesk on November 13, 2026 (primary source), CoinGlass liquidation data and CoinGecko price data checked November 13, 2026 at about 06:39 UTC, and InvestingLive and The Insight International on November 13, 2026 (secondary sources on the radar strike claim).

Bitcoin ($BTC) fell below $69,000 early on Friday, November 13, 2026, its lowest price since August 19, as a stronger US dollar, growing expectations of a Federal Reserve rate hike and a fresh escalation in the Middle East pushed leveraged traders out of their positions. More than $1.3 billion in crypto futures bets were liquidated in 24 hours, according to CoinGlass data cited by CoinDesk, and Bitcoin ($BTC) alone accounted for $677 million of the forced closures.

The drop extended a slide that has now erased 17% of Bitcoin's ($BTC) value this quarter, according to CoinDesk, reversing much of the rally of the previous three months. CoinGecko data checked at about 06:39 UTC showed Bitcoin ($BTC) at $68,821, down 6.45% in 24 hours, while the global crypto market value fell to about $2.45 trillion, down 3.8% in a day.

Bitcoin breaks $69,000, its lowest since August

Bitcoin ($BTC) fell to $69,000 in early Friday trading, hitting the lowest level since August 19, according to CoinDesk data. The price later steadied near $68,821, leaving it down about 6.5% over 24 hours, according to CoinGecko. Crypto Times, citing CoinGecko, put the price at $68,662.97 at about 04:15 UTC, down 6.8% in 24 hours.

The break below $70,000 mattered because the level had held through the recent sessions, and a large cluster of leveraged long positions sat just under it. CoinDesk reported that nearly $500 million in liquidations occurred just as Bitcoin ($BTC) fell below $70,000, a sign of how crowded the market had become with borrowed bets on higher prices.

The sell-off is the latest leg of a decline that began after the US midterm elections. The site reported on November 5 that Bitcoin ($BTC) had tumbled below $77,000 as a Nasdaq sell-off triggered $835 million in liquidations, and on November 10 that a hotter than expected October inflation reading had pushed rate-hike odds higher. Friday's move took the price about $8,000 below the November 5 level and lifted 24-hour liquidations to roughly $1.4 billion, according to CoinGlass figures reported by Crypto Times.

More than $1.4 billion in liquidations, and $500 million in one flush

Exchanges liquidated more than $1.3 billion in crypto futures positions over 24 hours, according to CoinGlass data cited by CoinDesk, and Crypto Times put the total at about $1.41 billion, with long positions making up 89% of the total. CoinGlass data as of 04:46 UTC showed 172,922 traders liquidated over the past 24 hours, according to Crypto Times.

Bitcoin ($BTC) accounted for $677 million of the liquidations, according to CoinGlass. Ethereum ($ETH) saw around $120 million in liquidations, while Solana ($SOL) recorded about $23 million, according to TradingView News citing the same data. The single largest liquidated position was worth more than $31 million, a long Bitcoin ($BTC) bet on Hyperliquid, the decentralized derivatives exchange, according to CoinDesk.

Liquidations happen when an exchange forcibly closes a leveraged position because losses have eaten through the trader's margin. In this case, the drop below $70,000 pushed a wave of long positions below their required collateral level, and the forced sales added selling pressure of their own, according to CoinDesk.

The dollar at a 19-month high and a hawkish Fed

The Dollar Index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of major currencies, traded above 103, its highest since April 2025, according to CoinDesk. The index has risen nearly 2% since early October as expectations of Federal Reserve tightening firmed, a headwind for liquidity-sensitive assets such as Bitcoin ($BTC).

The rate-hike case strengthened this week after the US Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that consumer prices rose 0.4% in October, above the 0.3% forecast. Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller said in a November 10 speech that the central bank should consider a half-point rate hike in December if core inflation came in around 0.3% or higher, according to CoinDesk. The Fed's target range for the federal funds rate is currently 3.75% to 4%.

Traders now watch the US Producer Price Index for October, due on November 13 at 13:30 UTC, for the next clue on inflation and the direction of rates. Last month's producer prices rose 1.3% against a 0.6% forecast, with core prices up 0.7%, according to CoinGabbar.

The radar strike claim that sped up the sell-off

CoinDesk reported that the sell-off gathered pace amid reports of renewed military escalation in the Middle East, including Iran's claim that it had destroyed a US early-warning radar in Bahrain. The claim has not been independently verified, and there was no immediate comment from the US military or the Bahraini authorities.

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said early on Friday that its Aerospace Force had targeted and destroyed a US military early-warning radar in Bahrain, in what it called retaliation for an air attack on a telecommunications tower in Sirik, on Iran's southern coast near the Strait of Hormuz, according to statements carried by the semi-official Tasnim news agency and the Guards-affiliated Fars news agency. InvestingLive reported the claim at 02:49 UTC, and PressTV carried the statement at 03:08 GMT.

The Guards called the operation a serious warning to end what it described as repeated aerial provocations and oil smuggling in the Strait of Hormuz, according to CoinDesk. The Insight International, citing a translation by Iran International, reported that the statement said the radar was targeted and destroyed a few hours earlier, and that the claim marked the first claimed direct hit on a US asset in a Gulf country since early September.

Iran's state news agency IRNA reported on Thursday that Sirik, a county in Hormozgan province on the Strait of Hormuz, had been hit in an enemy attack, according to The Insight International. Oil prices barely moved on the news: WTI crude traded around $88, down slightly from Thursday's high of $89.15, according to CoinDesk.

Ethereum below $2,000 and Solana below $80

The wider market fell with Bitcoin ($BTC). Ethereum ($ETH), the second-largest token, dropped below $2,000 for the first time since August, according to CoinDesk, which quoted it at $1,926.06. CoinGecko data checked at about 06:39 UTC showed Ethereum ($ETH) at $1,934.43, down 5.51% in 24 hours.

XRP ($XRP) traded close to the $1 level, while Solana ($SOL) slipped below $80, according to CoinDesk. CoinGecko showed Solana ($SOL) at $79.77, down 3.72% in 24 hours. Several smaller tokens fell 7% or more, including GT ($GT), Stacks ($STX) and Monero ($XMR), according to CoinDesk.

Sentiment turned sharply fearful. The Crypto Fear and Greed Index fell to 20, a reading classified as Extreme Fear, on November 13, according to Alternative.me data cited by CoinGabbar. The index had stood at 28, classified as Fear, on November 12. KuCoin's daily market report, using data as of 00:00 UTC on November 13, put Bitcoin ($BTC) at $71,450, down 3.46%, and Ethereum ($ETH) at $2,019.53, down 1.78%, before the overnight slide gathered pace.

Fifth straight day of ETF outflows

US spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded a fifth straight session of withdrawals, with about $1.44 billion in net outflows over the five sessions through November 11, according to estimates cited by CNBC TV18. The funds saw nearly $300 million in net outflows on November 11 alone, while Ethereum ($ETH) ETFs saw withdrawals of around $145 million the same day, according to the same report.

The steady withdrawals have removed a major source of buying demand just as leveraged positions were building. Glassnode data cited by KuCoin showed stablecoin supply fell by $14.2 billion over the past 30 days, the largest contraction since June 2022, a sign that less capital is available to buy crypto assets.

The technology sector added to the pressure. Nvidia's board accepted the resignation of co-founder Jensen Huang as president, chief executive officer and board member on November 11, effective immediately, according to a filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, and the news weighed on technology stocks through the week. The site reported the resignation on November 12.

What to watch next

The next facts to watch are the US Producer Price Index for October, due November 13 at 13:30 UTC, whether Bitcoin ($BTC) holds above $68,000 after breaking $69,000, whether the fifth straight session of spot Bitcoin ETF outflows extends into a sixth, whether the US or Bahrain comments on the Revolutionary Guard's radar strike claim, whether Ethereum ($ETH) reclaims $2,000, and whether the Federal Reserve's December meeting brings the half-point hike Governor Waller raised as a possibility.

Sources

• CoinDesk, BTC news: Prices slip below $70K, triggering $1.2 billion in liquidations, November 13, 2026 (primary source: Bitcoin fell below $70,000 early Friday to its lowest level since Aug. 19, as the Dollar Index held steady at 19-month highs; the sell-off accelerated amid reports of renewed military escalation in the Middle East, including Iran's claim that it destroyed a U.S. early-warning radar in Bahrain; exchanges liquidated more than $1.3 billion in cryptocurrency futures positions over 24 hours)
• CoinGecko, Bitcoin price, market cap and chart, November 13, 2026 (price data checked about 06:39 UTC: Bitcoin $68,821, down 6.45% in 24 hours; Ethereum $1,934.43, down 5.51%; Solana $79.77, down 3.72%)
• Crypto Times, Bitcoin Price Crashes Below $69K as Crypto Liquidations Top $1.41 Billion, November 13, 2026 (secondary source: Bitcoin fell below $69,000 on November 13, extending a weeklong slide; about $1.41 billion in crypto derivatives liquidations over 24 hours, with long positions making up 89%; 172,922 traders liquidated according to CoinGlass data as of 04:46 UTC)
• InvestingLive, Iran's Guards claim strike on US radar in Bahrain, warn firms over Hormuz oil trade, November 13, 2026 (secondary source: the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said it targeted and destroyed a US early-warning radar in Bahrain, in what it called retaliation for an air attack on a telecommunications tower in Sirik; the claim could not be independently verified, and there was no immediate comment from the US military or Bahrain)
• The Insight International, Iran's Revolutionary Guards say they struck a US early-warning radar in Bahrain after an attack on Sirik, November 13, 2026 (secondary source: the Guards-affiliated Fars news agency carried the statement; the claim could not be independently verified, and the Guards gave no details of the weapons used or of any damage; Iran's state news agency IRNA reported on Thursday that Sirik had been hit in an enemy attack)
• CNBC TV18 via TradingView, Bitcoin extends decline, slipping towards $70,000, November 13, 2026 (secondary source: US spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded nearly $300 million in net outflows on November 11, while Ethereum ETFs saw withdrawals of around $145 million; Bitcoin ETFs have witnessed approximately $1.44 billion in cumulative withdrawals over five consecutive sessions through November 11)
• KuCoin, Crypto Daily Market Report, November 13, 2026, November 13, 2026 (secondary source: through November 11, US spot Bitcoin ETFs had recorded five consecutive sessions of net outflows totaling approximately $1.44 billion; Glassnode data showed stablecoin supply declined by $14.2 billion over the past 30 days, the largest contraction since June 2022; Fear and Greed Index 20)

This article is news reporting and is not investment advice.