Bitcoin (BTC) Open Interest Drops 35% from Its All-Time High, Meaning Less Hedging and Speculative Trading

Open interest, which tracks the total number of outstanding derivative contracts at any time, declined from $57 billion when BTC hit its ATH

Open interest in Bitcoin (BTC) has dropped 35% from its all-time high, indicating less hedging and speculative trading, according to Glassnode.

Bitcoin open interest drops as market uncertainty lessens

Open interest, which tracks the total number of outstanding derivative contracts at any time, reached a peak of $57 billion when BTC hit its all-time high of $109,000. However, it has since decreased to $24.5 billion today. This decrease in open interest suggests that market movers are closing out uncertainty or unwinding leverage.

The digital asset is now attempting to regain momentum after recent selling pressure. Despite hitting an ATH of over $109,000 in January, Bitcoin has struggled to reclaim the $90,000 level, which serves as a crucial resistance.

Bitcoin has been attempting to break above the $90,000 resistance level for the last two weeks. This follows its failure to remain upward after hitting its all-time high, putting downward pressure on BTC and sparking speculation on whether the most recent bull run was complete or if a second rally could see it soar higher than ever.

This fall in open interest comes amid an overall trend of falling on-chain liquidity, according to on-chain data provider Glassnode. The unwinding of long-side bias from cash-and-carry trade, where traders make money on the difference between spot and futures prices, has also contributed to downward pressure.

Furthermore, some CME futures contracts are terminating, which puts more pressure on the price of Bitcoin. The Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) are also under pressure and recorded outflows.

Another notable shift is the decline in BTC’s “Hot Supply”—coins held for one week or less. In the last three months, the hot supply dropped from 5.9% of Bitcoin’s circulating supply to a mere 2.8%, a decline of more than 50%. This suggests fewer newly acquired Bitcoins are being actively traded, reducing market liquidity.

Bitcoin exchange inflows have also dramatically declined, going from 58,600 BTC / day to 26,900 BTC / day — a 54% decrease. While that may signal less selling pressure, it also means that demand is weaker, as fewer coins are being sent to exchanges to be traded.

BTC is currently trading at $84,001, holding above the important support at $85,000. Industry analyst “Unknown Trader” stressed that the Bitcoin uptrend is only intact above this level, and BTC only closed recently.

Additionally, the asset remains above the 200-day moving average, a historically bullish indicator for long-term price momentum. BTC is back up to the retest of around $85,000 again. If it soars, analysts anticipate a move to the resistance zone of $90,500-$92,441. Yet, this solid rejection level can keep fine-tuning a swoop back up until another retest at $85,000.

CryptoQuant analyst Woominkyu, for his part, reported potential institutional accumulation. He pointed out how the 30-day EMA of the Coinbase Premium Index is struggling to cross above the one-hundred-day EMA.

This crossover happened before BTC’s price rallies typically; therefore, institutional players could be accumulating Bitcoin. As institutional demand continues to pour in, BTC’s price could still rise, prolonging this bull market instead of signaling its top.