Cryptocurrency markets see $2.74 billion in liquidations amid Ethereum surge

The cryptocurrency market experienced significant volatility, with approximately $2.74 billion in liquidations occurring within a 24-hour period. Bitcoin led the volume with $1.42 billion in liquidations, 99% of which were short positions. Ethereum followed closely with $1.13 billion in liquidations, driven by a 17% price increase that triggered massive short squeezes. Solana also saw roughly $104 million in liquidations.

In separate developments, NEAR Protocol has introduced two new staking models designed to support decentralized artificial intelligence infrastructure. The IronClaw staking model converts user commitments into hosting credits, while the NEAR AI staking model transforms commitments into private inference capabilities. These models aim to provide computational resources for AI through blockchain-based staking.