Market Movers Today: BNB, AVAX, and DOT Set the Tone in Crypto Futures

Crypto Markets Gain Momentum After Fed Rate Cut, Analysts Remain Cautious

Major cryptocurrencies—including Bitcoin (BTC $115,778), Ether (ETH), XRP ($3.00), and Solana (SOL $237.21)—moved higher following Wednesday’s Federal Reserve interest-rate cut.

Analysts, however, are urging caution. “The Fed rate cut gave crypto a near-term lift, but the rally is not yet clean,” said Timothy Misir, head of research at BRN. Institutional flows support the market, but exchange inflows and a single-day ETF outflow indicate some profit-taking. Misir suggested using a $115,000–$115,500 bitcoin price band for tactical risk management.

Futures and Derivatives Activity
BNB, AVAX, and DOT saw double-digit gains in futures open interest (OI) in the last 24 hours, corresponding with 5–9% price increases. BTC’s OI in USD and USDT-denominated perpetuals declined, indicating derivative traders were slower to join the rally. BCH, TRX, BNB, XMR, AVAX, and SUI all showed positive open interest-adjusted cumulative volume delta, reflecting strong buying pressure. Smaller tokens remain stable, with annualized funding rates near 10%.

On the CME, Ether futures OI approaches 2 million ETH, while BTC positioning remains light. SOL offers higher carry with a 17% annualized return. On Deribit, BTC options show a neutral-to-bearish bias, while ETH options remain bullish. OTC trades included the $116K BTC call (Sept. 19) and $100K put (Oct. 31).

Altcoins and DeFi Sector
Altcoins rebounded after oversold RSI readings, with gains exceeding 10% in several tokens. Ether.fi (ETHFI) rose 12% to $1.64, its highest since January, and BNB surpassed $1,000 for the first time. Bitcoin consolidated above $110,000, moving toward $117,300, while BTC dominance slipped to 56%, signaling increasing appetite for altcoins.

The DeFi sector also benefited, with total value locked (TVL) across protocols reaching $170 billion, the highest since April 2022. Hyperliquid’s Layer-1 blockchain hit $2.77 billion TVL (+3.88%), and Sui TVL rose 3% to $2.1 billion.