The battle between crypto bulls and bears shows hope for the future

The blockchain space is seeing some areas of strength despite the perceived downturn in the market. The perpetual futures funding rates for Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) have flipped back to positive on major exchanges, which shows bullish sentiment among derivatives traders. In addition, Bitcoin started trading below its cost basis, which has marked previous areas of market bottoms. In contrast, June saw decentralized finance (DeFi) experience a 33% decrease in total value locked and crypto stocks provide a -42.7% average month-over-month return. 

There is an ongoing battle between bullish and bearish sentiments in different areas of the market. To help cryptocurrency traders maneuver through the battlefield, Cointelegraph Research recently launched its monthly “Investor Insights Report.” In the report, the research team breaks down the past month’s top market-moving events and the most critical data across the various sectors of the industry. The researchers provide expert analysis and insights that can benefit serious blockchain market participants.

Derivatives may provide a key indicator of changing sentiments

Leading up to June, there had been a strong bearish sentiment in the market. One indicator of bearish and bullish sentiment is the volatility skew of a market. The larger the skew range, the more volatile, while tighter ranges suggest less volatility — which implies more confidence in the market. On June 18, the Bitcoin options 25-delta skew peaked at 36%, the highest ever on record. Since then, some optimism has returned, sending the skew down to 17%. This signals a strong belief that the crypto market will rebound over the next few months.

Premiums on long calls on Bitcoin and Ether indicate that traders are optimistic about the end of the year. However, solvency issues and the risk of contagion are still present in the market and the minds of investors and regulators. 

In sideways markets, traders can use strangles to generate returns if…