Bitcoin investors set a new record for BTC futures positions as open interest exceeded $37.7 billion.
The increase in open interest coincides with record inflows into spot Bitcoin ETFs and a bullish long-short ratio; This indicates positive market sentiment and expectations that Bitcoin will reach all-time highs in the coming weeks.
Bitcoin {{BTC}} investors placed the highest positions ever in BTC-tracking futures in the asset’s history, as open interest surpassed $37.7 billion late Thursday, setting a new record.
This eclipses the previous peak of just under $37 billion in mid-March, when Bitcoin recorded new highs of $73,700.
According to The Block, this jump occurred as spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) broke an inflow record in 18 days. BlackRock’s IBIT saw net inflows of $340 million on Thursday, while Ark Invest’s ARKB saw net outflows of about $97 million, according to preliminary data tracked by SoSovalue.
According to Coinglass data, more than $ 5 billion open interest has been added since Monday and BTC prices increased from $ 68,500 to $ 71,000 during this period. Among the $37.7 billion, traditional finance giant Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) holds the highest bets at $11 billion, followed by crypto exchange Binance at $8 billion.
The significant long-short ratio indicates a bias towards an uptrend. Data shows the rate rose above 1 early Friday from Thursday’s 0.94.
Bitcoin long-short ratio. (CoinGlass)
A ratio above 1 means long positions outnumber short positions, indicating that market sentiment towards an asset is positive. On the other hand, a ratio below 1 indicates that short positions are more than long positions and indicates negative expectations.
Therefore, many traders expect Bitcoin to rise further in the coming weeks, citing increased risk appetite and positive regulatory expectations.
“Bitcoin may break through the resistance level in the 71k-73k region and renew all-time highs in the coming weeks, driven by optimism in financial markets,” Ruslan Lienka, market chief at crypto exchange YouHodler, told CoinDesk in an email on Friday. “Such a positive sentiment stems from expectations of interest rate cuts in the US and Europe, which encourage capital flows into risky assets.”
“Increased trading activity in meme stocks like GameStop and other underrated penny stocks indicates increased risk appetite,” Lienka added.