The cryptocurrency market has just experienced one of the biggest crashes in history, driven by President Donald Trump's surprise announcement of a 100% tariff on all Chinese imports — an action that sparked panic across global financial markets and digital assets alike.

Within hours of the announcement on October 10, 2025, more than $670 billion in market value evaporated, while over $19 billion in leveraged positions were liquidated across major exchanges such as Binance, Coinbase, and Kraken.
Bitcoin briefly dipped below $106,000 before recovering around $112,000, while Ethereumplunged to $3,500 and XRP dropped more than 22%. Analysts report that more than 1.6 million traders were liquidated within 24 hours — the largest wipeout since the 2022 FTX and 2020 COVID crashes.

The crash triggered a wave of backlash against centralized exchanges (CEXs).

• Binance was accused of auto-liquidating cross-margined collateral positions, which wiped out several altcoins by up to 90% in minutes.

• BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes commented that the sell-off was amplified by these automated systems, calling it “a great buying opportunity for steel-nerved traders”.

• Binance’s co-founder Yi He later apologized for user transaction failures, promising case-by-case reviews and possible compensation.

• Other CEXs — including Coinbase, Kraken, and Robinhood — suffered service outages during the mayhem, further exacerbating trader panic.

• Several crypto influencers, including Bob Loukas and Pentoshi, compared the event to the March 2020 “COVID crash”, describing it as “one of the top 3 brutal flushes of all time”.

• A whale was reported to have shorted BTC and ETH two days before the crash, prompting market manipulation allegations.

• Many users have begun advocating for self-custody and moving funds off exchanges after this incident.

• Trump’s trade war escalation caused investors to flee risky assets globally.

• CEX auto-liquidations and margin call cascades intensified sell pressure.

• System-wide outages on major exchanges limited exits, amplifying panic.

Despite the massive decline, analysts like Edul Patel (Mudrex CEO) argue that this is more of a "correction than collapse", suggesting potential rebound opportunities once macroeconomic tensions ease. Hayes and other market veterans believe that 2026 could usher in the next Bitcoin bull run, likening the current meltdown to the “shakeout phase” before recovery.

Overall, the October 2025 crash underscores the fragility of the crypto ecosystem under geopolitical shocks and the perils of over-leverage on centralized exchanges — yet also sets the stage for potential long-term accumulation by institutional players.