the head of research at K33, Vetle Lunde, stated that a long-term holder exchanged 22,400 BTC for ETH, propelling Ethereum to a new all-time high last week, highlighting a shift in dynamics in the market. However, the recent weakness in Bitcoin prices may not be over; the increase in leverage and significant rotation of funds towards Ethereum keeps pressure on the short term. The nominal open interest of perpetual futures contracts on Bitcoin (OI) has climbed to its highest level in two years, surpassing 310,000 BTC (approximately $34 billion), with an increase of 41,607 BTC over the last two months, including a surge of 13,472 BTC last weekend, marking a potential inflection point. The annualized funding rate of Bitcoin has risen from 3% to nearly 11%, showing an increasingly aggressive long position during price stagnation. Lunde indicated that the current situation is similar to the accumulation of leverage during the summers of 2023 and 2024, both of which led to significant liquidation collapses in August. This peak in OI occurs late in the month, suggesting that the market may enter a longer consolidation period, potentially leaving buyers at the bottom of the market trapped. Lunde warned: "The risk of pressure on long positions in the short term is high, it is advisable to maintain a conservative position until the market eliminates the excess leverage.
