Bitcoin Futures open interest is nearing all-time highs, currently valued at approximately 478k BTC ($31.8 billion).
Open interest in cash-margined futures has reached an all-time high of 384k BTC ($25.5 billion), driven primarily by institutional activity on the CME.
Crypto-margin as a percentage of total open interest is approaching an all-time low, currently around 18.5%.
Cash-margined bitcoin (BTC) futures contracts are more popular than ever.
Open interest in cash-margined futures hit an all-time high of 384,000 BTC ($25.5 billion) on Monday, surpassing the November 2022 peak of 376,000 BTC, when bitcoin traded near $16,000, according to data source Glassnode.
The CME futures accounted for 40% of the cash-margined tally on Monday. Glassnode’s cash and crypto-margin charts include standard futures data (excluding perpetuals) from Binance, Bitfinex, BitMEX, Bybit, CME, Deribit, Huobi, Kraken and OKX.
Cash-margined open interest has been steadily increasing for the last two years, while open interest in crypto-margined has steadily declined from 210,000 BTC to 87,000 BTC, now accounting for just 18.2% of the total open interest of 478,000 BTC.
Glassnode defines crypto-margin as “the total amount of futures contracts open interest that is margined in the native coin (e.g., BTC) and not in USD or stablecoin.” The firm defines cash-margin as “the total amount of futures contracts open interest that is margined in USD or USD-pegged stablecoins. Stablecoins include USDT and BUSD.”
Open interest (OI) refers to the number of active or open futures contracts at a given time. An uptick in open interest is said to represent an inflow of money and preference for leveraged products. Open interest can be measured in native token terms and notional terms. The latter is influenced by the underlying asset’s price and can be misleading.
Cash-margined contracts breed less volatility
In cash-margined contracts, the underlying collateral being used is stablecoins and/or dollars, which are more stable than tokens used as margin in the crypto-collaterized futures.
As such, cash-margined contracts are relatively less vulnerable to forced liquidations and breed less volatility. Ultimately, this could provide a more sustainable bull run moving into 2025.
The CME’s leadership in cash-margined segment suggests increasing institutional activity in the derivatives market. Sophisticated investors might be using CME futures to hedge their directional plays or set up the market-neutral basis trade.
In October 2023, CME became the largest futures exchange for the first time, capturing over 30% of the market share and overtaking Binance. This increase was most likely driven by traders pricing the expected debut of the U.S.-based spot ETFs, which went live in January.
Edited by Omkar Godbole.
Disclosure
Please note that our
privacy policy,
terms of use,
cookies,
and
do not sell my personal information
have been updated
.
CoinDesk is an
award-winning
media outlet that covers the cryptocurrency industry. Its journalists abide by a strict set of
editorial policies.
CoinDesk has adopted a set of principles aimed at ensuring the integrity, editorial independence and freedom from bias of its publications. CoinDesk is part of the Bullish group, which owns and invests in digital asset businesses and digital assets. CoinDesk employees, including journalists, may receive Bullish group equity-based compensation. Bullish was incubated by technology investor Block.one.
As the senior analyst at CoinDesk, James specializes in Bitcoin and the macro environment. Previously, his role as a research analyst at Swiss hedge fund Saidler & Co. introduced him to on-chain analytics. He monitors ETFs, spot and futures volumes, and flows to understand Bitcoin.
24H Low$1.9824H High$2.08PriceMarket Stats24H Average Transaction Feen/aReturnsNumber of TransactionsPrice PerformanceAverage Time Token is HeldTwitter SentimentSearch TrendsBitcoin CalculatorCrypto to FIATCrypto to CryptoLast Updated on 10/16/21 1:45 PM CoinDesk’s Bitcoin and Cryptocurrency Calculator determines the exchange rates between major fiat currencies and cryptocurrencies – including BTC, BCH, ETH and XRP to USD, EUR, GBP, IDR and NGN…
Aug 17, 2020 at 12:02 UTCUpdated Aug 17, 2020 at 12:07 UTCBitcoin remains in consolidation below a critical resistance despite hash rate reaching record highs over the weekend. Data from Glassnode shows the seven-day average for bitcoin’s hash rate – the computing power dedicated to mining blocks – rose to a record high of 129.03…
Coinbase has introduced its version of wrapped bitcoin, cbBTC, on the Ethereum and Base networks, allowing users to use bitcoin in DeFi applications. cbBTC is supported by various DeFi services for trading, lending, and as collateral, with automatic conversion features for Coinbase users transferring bitcoin to or from these networks. This launch follows Coinbase's hint
news Huobi Cloud, part of the crypto exchange Huobi Group, has announced its plan to provide more local financial institutions with white-label exchange services based on cloud technology in the Middle East and Africa. Existing institutions include the Nigeria-based SaBi exchange, with about $100,000 worth of daily crypto trading volume, and the South African exchange…
Wall Street investors are piling into small-cap stocks and exiting mega-caps on signs of cooling inflation and strengthening Fed rate-cut bets. The sector rotation could potentially lead to more capital deployment in the crypto market, according to Marex Solutions' Ilan Solot Wall Street's pivot to shares in small-cap companies at the expense of mega caps
Nov 18, 2020 at 5:25 p.m. UTCBitcoin surged past $18,000, just a day after breaching $17,000. (Pixabay, modified by CoinDesk)First Mover: As Bitcoin Shoots Past $18K, There’s Comfort in the Crowded TradeBitcoin’s ascent continues, with prices scaling the $18,000 mark during Asian trading hours. In a sign of persistent dip demand, sudden pullback to $17,200…
The journalist who exposed Claudine Gay's plagiarism bet was set to win $1400 in crypto via a Polymarket contract if she resigned by year's end.Chris Brunet lost money because she didn't quit fast enough but he still hopes to monetize his work by trading on prediction markets.The ethics of this aren't entirely clear, but it's
Billionaire Mike Novogratz's Galaxy Digital (GLXY.TO) has new coverage at Canaccord Genuity, which initiated the stock with a buy rating at C$17 price target.Galaxy “represents one of the most diversified ways to play digital assets," wrote analyst Joseph Vafi, whose price target suggests 30% upside from the current C$13.Galaxy's institutional trading business is a "share
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) one-two punch of suits against Binance and Coinbase this week hardly came out of the blue. The question of how to regulate crypto exchanges has been at a high simmer for years, and while the specifics of their approach are eminently debatable, the SEC was bound to go…