Guides and reference · Under water and near liquidation
Guide 04 of 121 min read
Under water and near liquidation
Two readings beside the Whale Tide: how much whale money is at a loss, and how much sits within 5% of its liquidation price.
Good for: a risk note after a sharp move, how much whale money is losing and how much sits close to a forced close.
Say BTC dropped overnight and you want to know how much whale money is hurting. The overview and the daily report show two readings beside the Whale Tide. Under water counts how much whale money is at a loss. Near liquidation counts how much sits close to its liquidation price. Both describe positions as they stand, not what comes next.
Under water
Under water is the share of directional whale money at a loss at the price of the moment, from 0 to 100%. It counts the same whales as the Tide: directional wallets with a track record, weighted by their money, one wallet at most a tenth of it. Hedges and market makers stay out, because one leg of a hedge is always at a loss.
Near liquidation
Near liquidation is the whale money whose liquidation price sits within 5% of the price, longs and shorts apart. Every wallet counts here, whatever its label, because a forced close moves the price the same way whoever holds the position. Longs near liquidation would be sold into a fall, shorts bought back into a rise.
How to read the change
Each reading carries yesterday’s close as a hollow ring and the change since then under the figure. A rise in under water means more whale money moved into a loss since the close. A rise in near liquidation means more money sits close to its liquidation price: the price moved toward it, a whale added leverage or a position opened near the line.
Neither reading says whether the price will get there. A whale can add margin and step back from the line before it does.