Journalist
Posted:
- Open BTC Futures on Binance increased from 85K BTC to 90K this week.
- BTC volatility is expected ahead of crucial US inflation data and the release of CZ.
Binance [BNB] exchange has registered a spike Bitcoin [BTC] Futures open contracts ahead of major US economic data and crypto-specific events.
The stock exchange saw an increase of almost 7% in Open Interest (OI) on September 23. This caused BTC Futures to jump from around 85,000 coins to 90,000 at the time of writing.
Notably, former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao (CZ) will be released from prison on September 29.
This meant that speculators, especially on the Binance exchange, took additional risks to bet on BTC. Maybe they were convinced of a potential BTC price collection before the US PCE Index (Price Consumption Expenditure) data.
Interest in BTC among speculators is increasing
Source: TradingView
Market experts are awaiting PCE data to estimate the possible pace of Fed rate cuts going forward. BTC could therefore respond to the data.
Some market observers view this event as a potential catalyst for BTC price volatility. In short, the time between September 27 and 29 could see tremendous volatility for the largest cryptocurrency.
The sharp increase in OI indicates increased market interest. By extension, it also underlines the bullish outlook of speculators in the futures market.
However, it also exposes speculators to the risk of mass liquidations, which could lead to further volatility and price swings for BTC.
According to Coinglass’ 1-week liquidation chart, the key levels to watch were at $62K and $65K. Short positions built up around $65K.
In addition, there were also significant long positions of $62K (as evidenced by the bright orange color).
Source: Coinglass
A sharp explosion above $65,000 could liquidate several short bets at this level, exposing bears to massive losses. Likewise, a wild retest of $62.2K area could reach over $800 million in long positions.
Bitcoin price action
Bitcoin’s value remained below $64,000, failing to surpass the crucial 200-day MA (Moving Average). The 200-day MA at the time of writing was $63.9k.
According to trader Daan Crypto, a strong move above the level and channel could mark a bullish market structure shift. This could accelerate BTC towards its ATH.
Source: Daan Crypto/X
That being said, such an upward move could trigger a short squeeze and expose the bears to losses. It remains to be seen whether these catalysts can push BTC to clear the $65K overhead hurdle.