Market Roundup: BTC Edges Higher Amid Derivative Caution; YZY Spells Losses for Investors

Crypto Market Recap: Altcoins Rally, Bitcoin Derivatives Signal Caution, YZY Traders Take Heavy Losses

The cryptocurrency market showed mixed dynamics on Thursday, with altcoins outperforming Bitcoin as traders weighed price trends and derivatives activity.

The CoinDesk 80 Index, which tracks a broad range of altcoins, rose 4% in the past 24 hours, while the CoinDesk 20 Index of major tokens gained just under 1%. Bitcoin (BTC) approached $113,600, with on-chain data suggesting sellers may reenter near this key resistance level.

“Bitcoin is forming its third consecutive rising daily candle, trading above $113K this morning,” said Alex Kuptsikevich, chief market analyst at FxPro. “Altcoin momentum, paired with stock market gains, has boosted risk appetite, while BTC’s earlier dip to $110K renewed buyer interest.”

Derivatives Insight
Despite Bitcoin’s gains, derivatives indicators point to caution: open interest (OI) in USDT- and USD-denominated perpetual futures across Binance, Bybit, OKX, Deribit, and Hyperliquid has declined, alongside low spot market volumes. Ether shows similar trends.

• Futures OI increased for SOL, DOGE, and ADA, while other major coins experienced outflows.
• Funding rates for most major tokens fell near zero, signaling neutral sentiment.
• On the CME, BTC futures OI remains below December highs; the three-month annualized basis is under 10%, but BTC options OI surged to 42.89K BTC, the highest since May 29.
• ETH CME futures OI reached a record 2.2 million ETH, indicating strong institutional participation.
• Deribit data show BTC put options trading at higher premiums than calls across all expiries, highlighting a bearish tilt, while ETH call bias weakened.
• OTC flows on Paradigm included BTC butterfly options and an outright ETH call at the $5,000 strike expiring Aug. 30.

Token Spotlight: YZY
The Solana-based YZY memecoin, linked to Ye (Kanye West), has resulted in widespread losses for retail traders. Bubblemaps reports that over 70,000 wallets are in the red following the token’s launch, promoted as part of the “YZY Money” ecosystem with payment rails and a branded card.

• 51,800+ wallets lost $1–$1,000
• 5,269 wallets lost $1,000–$10,000
• 1,025 wallets lost $10,000–$100,000
• 108 wallets faced six-figure losses; three traders lost over $1 million each
• Only 11 wallets gained $1 million+, 99 gained over $100,000, and 2,541 earned at least $1,000—less than 0.1% of traders captured meaningful profits

Structural flaws exacerbated the disparity: 70% of supply was reserved for Yeezy Investments LLC, 20% sold publicly, and 10% allocated for liquidity. The pool, seeded solely with YZY tokens without a stablecoin pairing, made it vulnerable to rapid withdrawals, similar to the short-lived LIBRA token in Argentina.

YZY’s launch underscores a recurring pattern in celebrity-backed memecoins: early insiders secure most gains while retail investors bear the brunt of losses.