Bitcoin’s derivative market sprang back to life on Monday with futures trading volume witnessing a triple-digit growth on the back of increased participation from U.S. based institutions.
- Aggregate daily futures volume on major exchanges surged 186% to $43 billion, the highest single-day volume since March 13, according to data source Skew.
- Daily trading volume on institutional exchange CME rose 570% to a yearly high of $1.32 billion; Bakkt registered a record volume of $132 million.
- Total open interest rose to $5 billion, the highest since February.
- Volumes declined sharply amid dull bitcoin price action, but picked up again as bitcoin crossed $10,400 – a bullish breakout.
- The price rise was a combination of increasing retail demand and institutional volumes, said Chris Thomas, head of digital assets at Swissquote Bank.
- Joel Kruger, a currency strategist at LMAX Digital, told CoinDesk bitcoin now looks overextended, suggesting we could soon see a healthy correction, especially with the global outlook increasingly uncertain and the price of bitcoin still vulnerable to weakness in stocks as was seen in March.
- The bitcoin supply – which fell to a 12-month low in Q2 – might now increase again as miners look to sell their coins on the open market, adding additional downside pressure.
- The cryptocurrency has pulled back from Monday's 11-month high of $11,394 to $10,700.
EDIT (July 28, 12:45 UTC): This article has been edited to add better clarity to Joel Kruger’s quote.