Cryptocurrency
Bitcoin futures open interest jumps by $1B: Manipulation or hedge?

Bitcoin’s (BTC) open interest on derivatives exchanges experienced a sudden surge of $1 billion on Sep. 18, prompting investors to question whether whales were accumulating in anticipation of the unsealing of Binance’s court filings.
However, a closer look at derivatives metrics suggests a more nuanced picture, as the funding rate did not exhibit clear signs of excessive buying demand.
The decision to unseal these documents was granted to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which had accused Binance of non-cooperation despite previously agreeing to a consent order related to unregistered securities operations and other allegations.

The open interest spiked to $12.1 billion while Bitcoin’s price concurrently increased by 3.4%, the highest point in over two weeks at $27,430.
However, investors soon realized that, aside from a comment by the Binance.US auditor regarding the challenges of ensuring full collateralization, there was little concrete information revealed in the unsealed documents.
Later in the day, Federal Judge Zia Faruqui rejected the SEC’s request to inspect Binance.US’s technical infrastructure and share additional information. Nevertheless, the judge stipulated that Binance.US must furnish more details about its custody solution, casting doubt on whether Binance International ultimately controls these assets.
By the end of Sep. 18, Bitcoin’s open interest had receded to $11.3 billion as its price dropped by 2.4% to $26,770. This decline indicated that the entities behind the open interest surge were no longer inclined to maintain their positions.
These whales were likely disappointed with the court’s outcomes, or the price action may not have unfolded as expected. In any case, 80% of the open interest increase disappeared in less than 24 hours.
Futures’ buyers and sellers are matched at all times
It can be assumed that most of the demand for leverage was driven by bullish sentiment, as Bitcoin’s price climbed alongside the increase in open interest and subsequently plummeted as 80% of the contracts were closed. However, attributing cause and effect solely to Binance’s court rulings seems unwarranted for several reasons.
Firstly, no one anticipated that the unsealed documents would favor Binance or its CEO, Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, given that it was the SEC that had originally requested their release. Additionally, the Bitcoin futures contract funding rate, which gauges imbalances between long and short positions, remained largely stable throughout this period.

If there had indeed been an unforeseen demand surge of $1 billion in open interest, primarily driven by desperate buyers, it’s reasonable to assume that the funding rate would have spiked above 0.01%. However, quite the opposite unfolded on Sept. 19, as Bitcoin’s open interest expanded to $11.7 billion while the funding rate plunged to zero.
With Bitcoin’s price rallying above $27,200 during this second phase of open interest growth, it becomes increasingly evident that, regardless of the underlying motives, the price pressure tends to be upward. While the exact rationale may remain elusive, certain trading patterns could shed light on this movement.
Market makers’ hedge could explain OI spike
One plausible explanation could be the involvement of market makers executing buy orders on behalf of substantial clients. This would account for the initial enthusiasm in both the spot market and BTC futures, propelling the price higher. After the initial surge, the market maker becomes fully hedged, eliminating the need for further buying and leading to a price correction.
During the second phase of the trade, there is no impact on Bitcoi price, as the market maker must offload the BTC futures contracts and purchase spot Bitcoin. This results in a reduction in open interest and may disappoint some participants who were anticipating additional buying fervor.
Rather than hastily labeling every “Bart” formation as manipulation, it is advisable to delve into the operations of arbitrage desks and carefully analyze the BTC futures funding rate before jumping to conclusions. Thus, when there is no excessive demand for leveraged long positions, an increase in open interest does not necessarily signify a buying spree, as was the case on Sep. 18.
This article is for general information purposes and is not intended to be and should not be taken as legal or investment advice. The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed here are the author’s alone and do not necessarily reflect or represent the views and opinions of Cointelegraph.
Cryptocurrency
Ethereum (ETH) Price Decline, Recent Cardano (ADA) Predictions, and More: Bits Recap August 1

TL;DR
ETH slumped by 6% amid the broader market correction, but whale accumulation, a nine-year low in exchange balances, and steady ETF inflows hint at a possible rebound in the near term.
ADA dropped even more, yet analysts remain bullish, with some predicting a surge beyond $4 if the asset clears key resistance at $0.92.
BTC briefly dipped below $114,500, but an RSI near 30 suggests oversold conditions, while optimistic traders eye a breakout to $145K-$150K.
ETH Heads South
The past several hours have not been pleasant for the cryptocurrency market, which has registered a significant pullback following the latest tariffs implemented by the Trump administration.
Ethereum (ETH) is among the losers with its price dropping by 6% on a daily scale to around $3,600 (per CoinGecko’s data). Historically, August has tended to be a bearish month for the asset, with gains recorded only in 2017, 2020, and 2021. It will be interesting to see if this year proves to be among the exceptions.
On the other hand, some key factors suggest that this might be only a temporary correction, followed by another rally. Whales have scooped up thousands of ETH in the past days, signaling strong confidence and reducing the amount of coins available on the open market.
Additionally, the number of tokens stored on crypto exchanges plummeted to a nine-year low of under 19 million. This means that investors have shifted from centralized platforms toward self-custody methods, which reduces the immediate selling pressure.
The flow of capital into spot ETH ETFs remains solid, while those interested in exploring more bullish factors and optimistic price predictions can refer to our article here.
ADA’s Next Targets?
Cardano’s native token has performed even worse than ETH in the past 24 hours, slipping by 8% to approximately $0.72 (its lowest point since mid-July).
Despite the downtrend, many analysts foresee a renewed uptrend knocking on the door. The popular X user, Ali Martinez, believes ADA’s current price structure resembles that of the last bull cycle, which was later followed by a massive rally.
Cardano $ADA is showing the same price structure as the last cycle, only this time, it’s unfolding more gradually. And it feels like we’re right at the beginning of an explosive move. pic.twitter.com/xbg3phaz6x
— Ali (@ali_charts) August 1, 2025
Hardy and Smith are also among the optimists. The former claimed ADA’s bull run has yet to begin, while the latter argued that the valuation could skyrocket to a new all-time high above $4 once it surpasses the breakout target of $0.92.
What About BTC?
The primary cryptocurrency briefly dipped under $114,500 before recovering some of the losses. As of this writing, it trades at around $115,000, representing a 3.2% drop on a daily basis.
Its negative performance coincides with the broader correction of the cryptocurrency market, as well as the actions of retail investors who appear to have shifted into selling mode.
However, many members of the crypto community believe BTC’s bull run is far from being over. X user CRYPTOWZRD forecasted a pump to $145,000 if it breaks $120,000, whereas Grypto GEMs set a target of $150,000.
Bitcoin’s Relative Strength Index (RSI), which measures the latest speed and magnitude of price changes, supports the bullish thesis. Currently, the ratio is hovering around 30, meaning the asset is oversold and may be due for a resurgence. Conversely, anything above 70 could be interpreted as a precursor of a pullback.
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Cryptocurrency
ETH Price Falls, But Ethereum ETFs Keep Breaking Records

Ethereum spot ETFs have recorded net positive flows for 20 consecutive trading days.
This accumulation streak, highlighted by a $17 million net intake on July 31, stands in stark contrast to Bitcoin ETFs, which saw a $115 million exit on the same day, their first outflow after five days of gains.
Institutional Appetite
The latest run of 20 days surpassed an earlier one of 19 green days between May 16 and June 12, cut short by $2.18 million in outflows on June 13. This was followed by a few days of intermittent flows before the current spree kicked off in earnest on July 3.
It has since pushed cumulative allocations to $9.64 billion, per SoSoValue data, with July alone seeing $5.41 billion in net capital directed toward ETH ETFs, more than the combined total of the previous 11 months.
BlackRock’s ETHA remains the market leader, attracting $18.18 million on July 31 and now holding $11.37 billion in assets, representing 2.52% of ETH’s market cap. Meanwhile, Grayscale’s ETHE reported $6.8 million in withdrawals, though its $4.22 billion asset base shows its continued relevance. Fidelity’s FETH recorded a $5.62 million boost, bringing its net assets to $2.55 billion.
The momentum is striking when viewed against historical trends. The last recorded outflow was on July 8, after which funds posted some of their largest single-day gains, including $726.7 million on July 16, $602 million on July 17, and $533.8 million on July 22. These inflows helped Ethereum ETF assets climb to $21.52 billion, roughly 4.77% of the cryptocurrency’s market cap.
Ethereum Price Action
Despite the ETF-fueled demand, ETH slipped 2.4% in the last 24 hours to around $3,786, following a brief rally to $3,933 earlier this week. However, the token is up 53% in the past 30 days, outpacing Bitcoin’s rangebound movement between $116,000 and $119,000.
Industry analysts see these ETF flows as structurally bullish. Recently, QCP Capital cautioned that overheated funding rates could introduce near-term resistance around $4,000, but it stressed that continued institutional demand, paired with corporate treasuries like SharpLink Gaming and BitMine accumulating billions in ETH, may underpin further upside.
Meanwhile, on July 31, the total value traded across ETH ETFs stood at $1.28 billion. If this pace holds, it could help ETH challenge its November 2021 all-time high of $4,878 sooner than expected, potentially cementing its role as the frontrunner in an altcoin-led cycle.
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Cryptocurrency
BlackRock Ripple (XRP) ETF Coming Soon? Here’s What You Need to Know

Nate Geraci, President of The ETF Store, believes that the world’s largest asset manager – BlackRock – will file for an XRP ETF.
If true and if history is any indicator, this could have a long-term positive impact on XRP as an asset, following in the footsteps of ETH and even BTC.
BlackRock XRP ETF a Possibility According to Expert
Geraci believes that it’s only logical for BlackRock to file for an XRP ETF. He cited the asset manager’s attempt to position itself as a “thought leader,” and thinks that it wouldn’t make a lot of sense for the financial behemmoth to ignore a top-five non-stablecoin cryptocurrency by means of total market capitalization. He also thinks the firm will file for a spot Solana (SOL) ETF.
He also believes that they will be filing for an index-based crypto ETF:
If launching index-based crypto ETF (which I’m highly confident they will), then you’re launching individual spot ETFs. I get the “BlackRock is all in on ETH,” or “they think XRP is scam.” This is all about business. They open up flank not pursuing additional spot ETFs IMO.
To this, he also added that by failing to add more individual spot ETFs, BlackRrock would essentially send a message to their clients and prospective investors that “there will only ever be two winners in crypto: BTC and ETH.”
He also said that they are still early because one of their main competitors is still following the “blockchain, not bitcoin” meta.
Sticking w/ prediction that BlackRock will launch both xrp & sol ETFs…
Doesn’t make sense that world’s largest asset manager (& current leader in both spot btc & eth ETFs) would ignore two top 5 non-stablecoin crypto assets.
I also expect them to launch index-based crypto ETF.
— Nate Geraci (@NateGeraci) August 1, 2025
XRP ETFs The New Meta?
It’s perhaps safe to assume that a major deterrent for large-scale asset managers to file for XRP ETFs was the ambiguity surrounding its legal status amid the case between the US Securities and Exchange Commission and Ripple Labs.
Now that this has almost been resolved, and following the Commission’s newfound crypto-oriented focus, investors and asset managers are far more confident in the US-based crypto company. This has also largely been reflected in XRP’s price, which is up by a staggering 400% in the last year.
Multiple companies have already filed for a spot XRP ETF, including Franklin Templeton, Bitwise, Canary Capital, Grayscale, 21Sharse, and WisdomTree.
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