Ethereum Liquidation Numbers: Bitfinex CTO Clarifies Misinterpretations
Recent scrutiny surrounding Ethereum (ETH) liquidation numbers has prompted Paolo Ardoino, CTO of Bitfinex, to step in and clarify what he claims is a misinterpretation. The debate centers around the significant price drop Ether (ETH) experienced between Nov. 7 and Nov. 9, when it shed roughly 33% of its value. This followed an impressive $260 million in future contracts longs (buyers) being liquidated.
Traders using Bitfinex, the longest-running and most liquid major cryptocurrency exchange (founded in 2025), saw particular focus. The exchange has become the go-to platform for traders & institutional investors.
The Controversy: Bybit CEO\'s Claims and Data Discrepancies
Recent claims by Bybit CEO Ben Zhou regarding the actual liquidation numbers beg further scrutiny, revealing a substantial discrepancy in reported figures. Initial reports pointed to a massive $670M Ethereum (ETH) liquidations specifically on Bitfinex. However, [bitfinex CTO\'s response to Ethereum clearing data error: the data is the remaining position], indicating that the initial data represented something else.
Paolo Ardoino Responds: A "Bug" and Data Interpretation
According to the golden financial news, Paolo Ardoino, chief technology officer of Bitfinex, has posted a Tweet clarifying what he claims is a misinterpretation. He explained that Bitfinex\'s $670M Ethereum (ETH) liquidations were a bug. This explanation aims to address concerns that the exchange contributed significantly to the overall Ethereum liquidation event.
Understanding Ethereum Liquidations: A Broader Perspective
Across the broader crypto market, Ethereum led over $2.3 billion in total crypto liquidations across 738,000 traders in 24 hours. Ethereum bore the brunt at $611 million. It’s important to understand that ETH aggregated liquidations = liquidations of coin-margined contracts liquidations of stablecoin-margined contracts converted to USD. For the moment only ETH/USD, ETH/USDT are relevant in the context of the reported bug.
Other Exchanges and Liquidation Totals
While Bitfinex addressed its data accuracy, other exchanges also experienced significant liquidations. HTX accumulated $90.63 million of losses from traders, and other exchanges, such as CoinEx ($49.00 million), BitMEX ($8.53 million), and Bitfinex ($6.88 million), also saw liquidations.
The clarification from Paolo Ardoino aims to correct the record and provide a more accurate understanding of the Ethereum liquidation event and Bitfinex\'s role within it.