Bitcoin open interest across leading centralized exchanges remains significantly below the record levels set during the market’s 2025 peak. Latest figures place open interest at $21.75 billion, marking a 54% decrease from the all-time high of $47.58 billion recorded on October 6, 2025— the day Bitcoin reached its peak price.
Market participants remain cautious
For the past four months, open interest has hovered near the lows seen in March. This trend indicates most traders have avoided returning to aggressive leveraged Bitcoin positions, opting instead for a cautious approach after last year’s market downturn.
Analysts noted that leverage-driven speculative activity remained muted despite stabilization in Bitcoin’s price. Rather than taking on higher risk via futures markets, participants appear to be positioning defensively.
Compared to past cycles, this period shows both price and open interest declining in tandem, pointing to a coordinated pullback in market exposure instead of widespread forced liquidations.
Exchanges reveal mixed trends
Exchange data shows diverging trends. Binance, the largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, grew its share of total Bitcoin open interest to around 35%. However, this gain did not come from an influx of new leveraged bets. In the last 30 days, open interest at Binance fell 13%, and declines were even sharper on competing platforms—allowing Binance’s relative share to increase as overall activity dropped.
Bybit was the outlier among major exchanges, posting a 10% rise in Bitcoin open interest in the same period. Meanwhile, Deribit’s Bitcoin options market activity remained subdued, suggesting traders are not moving risk exposure from perpetual futures to options markets at this stage.
Ethereum, the second-largest cryptocurrency, displayed a similar pattern. While open interest briefly spiked between July 4 and July 6, it soon retreated to previous levels. XRP, another major token, recorded the weakest derivatives activity, with open interest dropping 82% from its high last summer, reaching the lowest point in the current dataset.
Mini dictionary: Bybit is a centralized cryptocurrency exchange established in 2018, offering spot and derivatives trading for a wide range of digital assets. It is recognized for its active futures market and innovative trading features.
| Exchange | Change in Bitcoin Open Interest (30 days) | Market Share |
|---|---|---|
| Binance | -13% | 35% |
| Bybit | +10% | Not specified |
| Other Major Exchanges | Steeper declines | Not specified |
Open interest and market structure
Previous Bitcoin cycles have typically seen a rapid rebound in open interest and leverage soon after major price corrections, as traders return to the market to chase price action. Yet, the current cycle is notable for its low leverage, with both spot prices and open interest falling by roughly 50% since October’s highs.
Markus Thielen, a respected crypto analyst, presented a recent chart highlighting these trends. The chart showed open interest decreasing in line with price, while the funding rate, which influences the cost of holding leveraged positions, swung sharply from -12.6% to +7.1% during the volatility.
If leverage remains at these subdued levels, future Bitcoin price movements could be driven more by spot market demand than by speculative activity in futures, potentially altering the market’s recovery pattern compared to previous cycles.
Derivatives reset after record highs
The sharp reset in Bitcoin futures open interest—from $42 billion in October 2025 to $21 billion—signals a significant pullback in market positioning. This reduction reflects a more measured stance among traders, and may reduce the risk of sudden, widespread liquidations if prices remain volatile.
Traders have shown little desire to rebuild large leveraged positions, keeping Bitcoin open interest at historically low levels despite recent price stabilization.
