TradingKey – Bitcoin’s open interest surges to $74.5 billion, highlighting intense market divergence between bulls and bears, setting the stage for increased volatility.  

On Wednesday, May 21, Bitcoin (BTC) futures open interest climbed to $74.5 billion, marking a new all-time high - Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) leads with $17.2 billion, followed by Binance holding $12.2 billion.  

Bitcoin Futures Open Interest Data – Source: Coinglass.

Since Monday, Bitcoin futures open interest has spiked 6%, adding $4.5 billion in value. Analysts attribute this surge to growing uncertainty surrounding U.S. fiscal policy and Bitcoin’s approach toward its historic $110,000 high, prompting traders on both sides to increase their bets.  

Bitcoin Price Trend – Source: TradingView.

While Bitcoin’s open interest hitting record highs underscores the market’s heightened activity, it does not necessarily indicate further price increases.  Instead, it reflects strong sentiment divergence between bullish and bearish positions.  

However, crypto analytics firm Santiment maintains a bullish stance on Bitcoin.  Santiment stated on social media:  "Over the past five weeks, Bitcoin ETF net inflows have reached $6.63 billion. Historical data suggests this is typically a strong bullish signal for BTC’s future price movement."

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