Bitcoin Nears $62K as Ether, Solana Rally on Short Squeeze and Fed Rate Hopes

Bitcoin climbed toward the $62,000 mark on Friday, while ether and solana outperformed the broader cryptocurrency market as a wave of short liquidations fueled the strongest weekly rally since mid-June.

Bitcoin traded around $61,360, posting a weekly gain of roughly 2.5%, according to CoinDesk data. Ether rose 4.2% over the past 24 hours to about $1,702, extending its weekly advance to 9.7%. Solana remained near $80 and led gains among major cryptocurrencies with an 18.6% weekly increase. XRP added 5.7% over the week to trade around $1.09, while Hyperliquid's HYPE token gained 5.1% during the day.

The rally was driven in part by a sharp short squeeze. Coinglass data showed that crypto traders betting against the market lost approximately $281 million in liquidations over the past 24 hours, compared with $159 million in long liquidations. Total forced liquidations reached about $440 million across nearly 95,700 traders.

Short squeezes occur when traders holding bearish positions are forced to buy back assets as prices rise, creating additional upward momentum. Ether accounted for the largest losses among short sellers, with roughly $157 million in liquidated positions, surpassing bitcoin's $103 million. The biggest single liquidation was an $18.2 million ether position on Hyperliquid.

A weaker-than-expected U.S. June employment report also supported risk assets. The softer labor data reduced expectations that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates again, weakening the U.S. dollar and boosting investor sentiment toward cryptocurrencies, according to Bloomberg. Gold extended its gains, while Asian equities also recovered after recent technology-driven declines.

South Korea's KOSPI index jumped 3%, supported by a 6.8% rally in Samsung Electronics after reports that AI startup Anthropic is discussing a custom AI chip partnership with the company. The rebound in AI-related stocks helped stabilize broader market sentiment, easing concerns over capital rotating away from digital assets.

Despite the recent surge, analysts remain cautious. Much of the latest advance has been fueled by forced short-covering rather than fresh buying demand. In addition, U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs continue to experience significant outflows, while thinner third-quarter market liquidity could amplify volatility in either direction.