Bitcoin approaches $72,000 as rising open interest points to increasing leverage in a volatile market.

Bitcoin moved higher alongside equities, but a surge in open interest and declining volatility suggests traders are increasingly using leverage—even as the market struggles to break convincingly above $72,000.

BTC rose about 1.2% after midnight UTC, tracking gains in U.S. equity futures, with the Nasdaq 100 up roughly 1% over the same period. The move followed a pullback in oil prices below $100 after Donald Trump floated a 15-point plan aimed at ending the Iran conflict, though Iranian officials later dismissed the proposal.

Despite the recent bounce, bitcoin has repeatedly failed to sustain moves above $72,000 this month. Each attempt has been followed by a pullback toward the $67,000–$65,000 range, where buyers have stepped in. The repeated rejections near resistance have encouraged traders to open short positions, contributing to a disproportionate rise in open interest.

Meanwhile, parts of the altcoin market are showing relative strength. Decentralized finance tokens like LDO and ETHFI have gained between 2.5% and 3.5% over the same period, outperforming bitcoin on a short-term basis.

Derivatives positioning

Futures data points to a notable build-up in leverage across the market. Total crypto open interest climbed to around $112 billion, marking a one-week high. The top 10 tokens, including BTC and ETH, all recorded increases of at least 4% in futures open interest over the past 24 hours.

Ether open interest rose to approximately 14.55 million ETH, the highest level since late August. Combined with positive funding rates and rising cumulative volume delta, this suggests growing demand for long positions. Other tokens such as DOGE and ZEC also saw open interest jump by more than 10%.

At the same time, volatility is trending lower. Bitcoin’s 30-day implied volatility index (BVIV) has declined for three consecutive sessions, approaching weekly lows near 53%, indicating a fading geopolitical risk premium. Ether volatility is also easing. On options platform Deribit, put skews continue to soften, though pricing still reflects some downside caution across maturities.

Looking ahead, a multibillion-dollar options expiry on Friday could influence price action. The so-called “max pain” level sits near $75,000, suggesting a potential magnet for prices in the near term.

Token performance

The CoinDesk Computing Select Index (CPUS) led gains on Wednesday, rising 1.9%, while the CoinDesk 20 (CD20) advanced 0.9%. The CPUS index is heavily weighted toward AI-linked tokens, including TAO, FET, and Chainlink, which accounts for a significant portion of the index.

LINK rose 1.5%, while TAO and FET climbed 4.9% and 2.9%, respectively. Broader sentiment toward altcoins has also improved, with CoinMarketCap’s “Altcoin Season” indicator rising to 48/100 after spending much of February near 22.

On the other hand, privacy-focused tokens such as XMR and ZEC slipped around 1%, as traders rotated between sectors in anticipation of a potential breakout in the broader market.