Liquidation heatmap

A liquidation heatmap plots where leveraged long and short crypto positions are concentrated across price and leverage tiers, from low leverage like 5x up to extreme leverage like 100x. Each cluster on the map represents open positions that would be automatically force-closed by an exchange if price reaches that level, because the trader's margin can no longer cover the position's losses. The heatmap aggregates this across every leverage tier at once, so a single glance shows both how much leverage is stacked at a given price and how far away that price currently sits.

A heavy cluster carries a built-in mechanical pull. Once price reaches it, forced closes happen automatically and immediately, regardless of anyone's trading decision, which itself pushes price further in the same direction and can be enough to trigger the next cluster beyond it, a liquidation cascade. That's why clusters often behave like magnets rather than pure risk zones to avoid. Some participants specifically watch for thin gaps between price and a large cluster as a level worth targeting rather than fearing.

The heatmap shows where forced flow would happen, not whether price will actually get there or what catalyst might push it. It's also a snapshot. New leveraged positions open and existing ones close constantly, so clusters shift as the session goes on, and a heavy cluster today can thin out by tomorrow as those positions get closed voluntarily rather than liquidated. And it says nothing about spot or unleveraged positioning. It only reflects the leveraged derivatives side of the market, which can be a small or large share of total activity depending on conditions.

Picture Bitcoin trading at $61,000 with a heavy cluster of long liquidations mapped at $58,500, built mostly from 25x-leveraged positions opened when price was higher. If a sell-off pushes price down to $58,500, those longs get force-closed all at once, an automatic wave of selling that can push price through the level and toward the next cluster, say at $57,200, faster than the original move alone would have. The heatmap can't say whether that first sell-off happens. It can only say that if price does reach $58,500, a specific, quantifiable amount of forced selling is waiting there.