In the altcoin market, there are no longer the significant losses experienced last month in December. Now they are entering a new sideways phase. Several altcoins with unique catalysts and news have prompted many derivatives traders to take unilateral positions.
However, this week also brings several important macro events. These events may expose their positions to significant liquidation risks.
1. Zcash (ZEC)
From an all-time high of $748 last month, ZEC has dropped by 50%. Such a deep decline attracts investors who feel they have missed out on previous opportunities. This sentiment encourages derivatives traders to anticipate a recovery in December. As a result, the accumulated liquidation volume of long positions has increased.
Traders also received another reason to bet on long positions. Zcash founder Zooko Wilcox will participate in a discussion on December 15 organized by the SEC about crypto, economic oversight, and privacy. Investors expect his appearance to boost support for privacy altcoins, including ZEC.
If long positions remain overly confident without stop-loss plans, long position traders may face liquidations of up to 98 million dollars if ZEC drops to 295 dollars this week.
BeInCrypton's recent analysis shows that ZEC is in a broader downtrend following the previous FOMO rally. Its technical structure continues to resemble a bubble pattern.
2. Aster (ASTER)
Aster, the leading derivatives DEX on the BNB Chain, has benefited significantly from the increase in trading activity during the Perpetual DEX boom in September. However, its price has since dropped over 60% and now fluctuates below 1 dollar.
Liquidation maps indicate that the total liquidation volume of short positions exceeds long positions. However, short sellers may face significant risk this week.
Aster recently announced an accelerated buyback program starting on December 8, 2025. The new daily buyback pace is around 4 million dollars, while the previous was 3 million dollars.
This development could support a price increase this week. If ASTER rises to 1.07 dollars, the total liquidation volume on the short side may exceed 32 million dollars.
Technically, analysts also note that the price has reached a strong support area and broken above a one-month trend line.
3. Bittensor (TAO)
Bittensor's (TAO) liquidation map shows serious imbalances. The liquidation volume on the long side exceeds yesterday's short side.
If TAO drops to 243.50 dollars, long position traders may face losses of nearly 17 million dollars. On the other hand, a rise to 340 dollars could liquidate about 5 million dollars worth of short positions.
Why are so many traders betting on long positions? Many expect the price to rise before the first halving of TAO.
According to BeInCrypto, around December 14, Bittensor's first halving will reduce the daily issuance from 7,200 TAO to 3,600 TAO, as the total supply reaches 10.5 million.
This supply reduction decreases the emissions granted to network participants and increases the scarcity of TAO. Bitcoin's history shows that supply reductions can enhance network value despite smaller rewards, as its network security and market value have been strengthened through four consecutive halvings. Similarly, Bittensor's first halving marks a key milestone in the network's maturation towards a supply cap of 21 million tokens.” – Grayscale explained.
Grayscale's report has reinforced bullish sentiment among long traders. Without a precise stop-loss plan, the 'sell the news' effect could trigger widespread liquidations.
Additionally, the second week of December is the week when the Federal Reserve will announce its interest rate decisions. Historically, this announcement has a much larger market impact than most crypto news. Even if traders correctly predict the Fed's decisions, they may still fail to avoid extreme volatility that triggers liquidations for both long and short positions.
