Bitcoin Traders Pile Into Long Positions as Price Slips Below $88K, Kraken Reports
As Bitcoin (BTC) tumbles to a three-month low, traders on Kraken are increasing their long positions, signaling confidence in a potential rebound, according to Alexia Theodorou, Kraken’s head of derivatives.
BTC briefly dipped below $88,000 amid heightened risk aversion in traditional markets. Nasdaq futures pointed to further weakness in tech stocks, while the Japanese yen—often viewed as a safe haven—maintained its strength against the U.S. dollar and commodity-based currencies like the Australian dollar.
The market downturn coincided with a $1 billion surge in open futures positions on Binance late Monday, suggesting an influx of short positions betting on further declines.
However, traders on Kraken have responded differently, aggressively buying into the dip. The exchange’s perpetual futures long-short ratio has climbed to a record 0.8, indicating a growing number of traders are taking bullish positions relative to active short positions.
“Kraken has observed a surge in long positions on BTC perpetual markets despite prices falling below $90K,” Theodorou told CoinDesk. “The long-short ratio has reached an all-time high of ~0.8, and open interest has hit a four-week peak, reflecting growing trader optimism.”
While this bullish sentiment is promising, the ratio remains below 1, meaning there are still more shorts than longs in the system.
“This spike in long positions shows confidence, but with leverage still present in the market, there’s potential for further downside risks,” Theodorou noted. “If a long squeeze occurs, we could see another wave of liquidations before any sustained recovery.”
Share this content:
