Bitcoin’s price fell below the $71,000 mark for the first time in seven weeks, shaking the market with $276 million wiped out in leveraged long positions as geopolitical tensions escalated. Heightened risk aversion emerged amid renewed military activity involving the US, Iran, and Israel, yet institutional traders and whales intensified their bullish derivatives holdings instead of retreating.
On major exchanges like Binance and OKX, top traders notably increased their long-to-short ratios. Binance’s leading traders lifted their ratio from 1.1 times to 1.4 times over the week, reflecting steady accumulation of long futures since Bitcoin dropped below $76,500. Meanwhile, OKX traders initially expanded short bets but reversed course sharply, ending Monday with a long-to-short ratio nearing 1.9 times. Despite the volatility and forced liquidations, aggregate open interest across Bitcoin futures remained stable at around $43.5 billion, indicating no mass exodus from positions.
The annualized funding rate on Bitcoin perpetual futures climbed above 6%, reaching around 12%—the highest level in over six months. This jump signals growing confidence among bullish traders but also elevates the risk of cascade liquidations if prices continue to fall. Still, the funding rate remains moderate, showing neither desperation nor widespread panic.
Concurrently, Tether’s USDT stablecoin traded at a slight discount near 0.10%, a subtle sign that some capital is flowing out of crypto and back into fiat currencies. This trend coincides with broader market influences, including a surge in oil prices following missile attacks linked to Iran and military incursions in Lebanon.
While Bitcoin’s price faces downward pressure—partly due to rising oil costs—the tech-focused Nasdaq Composite index recorded gains, fueled by intense investor interest in artificial intelligence (AI) sectors. The announcement of confidential initial public offering (IPO) filings by AI-driven companies like Anthropic and SpaceX has attracted capital away from cryptocurrencies, adding to outflows from Bitcoin futures spot products.