Bitcoin News

Bitcoin Open Interest Hits Peak Since FTX Crash: What It Means

Bitcoin futures open interest

In a market that has been relatively quiet for weeks, Bitcoin (BTC) has suddenly sprung to life, with its Futures Open Interest (OI) reaching levels not seen since the FTX crash. Open Interest, a metric that measures the total number of outstanding futures that have not been settled, provides a glimpse into the trading activity and potential future price movements of an asset. A surge in OI can indicate heightened trading activity and interest in the market.

Starting early Tuesday, Bitcoin’s price action surged by more than 3.5%, breaking the $30,300 mark for the second time this month. This movement began around 5 am EST, pushing the price to a 16-day-high. The catalyst behind this surge seemed to be the rumor that insiders at BlackRock and Invesco have confirmed that a Bitcoin spot ETF is not a question of “if” but “when”, suggesting an approval within the next four to six months.

“Bitcoin whales opened giga long positions at $29k,” remarked CryptoQuant CEO Ki Young Ju. The Head of Research at CryptoQuant further added, “A lot of talk lately about increasing probability of Bitcoin spot ETF approval in the US. Now Coinbase premium sharply up and moving towards positive territory (implies Bitcoin demand in the US is strengthening). GBTC price discount has continued to narrow.”

Bitcoin Futures Open Interest Skyrockets To Yearly High

Aggregate OI for Bitcoin futures saw a significant jump, increasing by over $1 billion from the previous day to a staggering $14.95 billion, according to Coinglass data.

Bitcoin futures open interest | Source: Coinglass

This surge marks the most substantial increase in over a month. However, derivatives activity on the CME, often seen as a gauge of institutional trading, remained relatively unchanged in OI, suggesting that the recent move might be predominantly retail-driven.

Miles Deutscher commented on Twitter, “Bitcoin open interest is now at its highest level since the FTX collapse. This indicates increased BTC trading activity from market participants. Looks like a big move is brewing.” Similarly, James V. Straten observed, “Bitcoin open interest is now greater than 2.25% of the market cap, approaching YTD highs, and looks exceptionally overheated.”

FOI vs market cap
FOI vs market cap | Source: Twitter

The Kingfisher, a renowned data provider for Bitcoin derivatives, noted, “Coinbase selling into every other major exchange buying. Looks like Bybit & Bitmex degens are betting on…

Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at NewsBTC…