CME BTC futures open interest recovers to $5.64 billion as institutional investors adjust to volatility after decline

Open Interest (OI) for CME Long Positions Bitcoin

-2.48%
Futures trading by asset managers reached $4.97 billion two weeks ago, the lowest point for the indicator since early March and a significant drop from the all-time high of $6.74 billion seen in the first week of July.

However, it has recently shown a rebound, with OI increasing to $5.64 billion last week.

The recent decline suggests that asset managers are reducing their long exposure to BTC, which could be a response to recent market volatility or part of a risk management strategy during a time of macroeconomic uncertainty. It is also worth noting that despite the recent decline in OI, the current OI is still significantly higher than last year.

To put that in perspective, this figure is up from just $1.24 billion a year ago, showing a significant and sustained increase in institutional long positions in Bitcoin.

Meanwhile, hedge funds’ CME ETH futures long positions OI hit a yearly low of $136.26 million, the lowest level since mid-October 2023 when it was $138.47 million.

The fact that hedge funds have significantly reduced their long positions in ETH futures could indicate an increasingly cautious stance or a growing desire to hedge their positions.

However, it is noteworthy that asset managers’ long OI on CME ETH futures remains relatively strong, hitting $419.63 million last week.

This figure is almost double the $214 million recorded earlier this year, showing that institutional interest in ETH remains relatively strong despite recent volatility.

This is an excerpt from The Block’s Data & Insights newsletter, where we dig into the numbers that make up the industry’s most thought-provoking trends.

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