Analysts see risk appetite signs as Bitcoin futures OI rises 13%

Bitcoin futures open interest recovered 13% in January following the massive deleveraging event last year, suggesting a slow return of risk appetite.

Bitcoin futures open interest (OI) — a measure of derivative market participation — has gained almost 13% from the start of the year, which analysts say could reflect more risk appetite for crypto. 

Bitcoin futures OI has fallen 17.5% from 381,000 BTC to 314,000 BTC over the past three months, following a roughly 36% price correction from early October, “reflecting a phase of risk reduction and the unwinding of leveraged positions,” said CryptoQuant analyst “Darkfost” on Monday.

However, a recovery in Bitcoin futures OI could be in motion, said Darkfost. Data from Coinglass shows it gained from an eight-month low of $54 billion on Jan. 1 to more than $61 billion on Jan. 19.

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