Bitcoin Breakout Above $31K Elusive as Shorts Pile In
Bitcoin has failed twice this week to scale the $31,000 mark, with open interest in stablecoin-margined futures rising on both occasions.
Bitcoin (BTC) has failed twice this week to establish a foothold above $31,000. Data from Coinalyze shows futures traders are likely responsible for keeping the gains under check.
The first failed attempt on Monday at 20:05 UTC saw prices clock a high of $31,040 before quickly retreating back to $20,200 by 21:55 UTC. Open interest or the number of active (or linear) futures contracts tied to bitcoin rose from roughly 230,000 BTC to 242,000 BTC as prices pulled back from $31,040.
A rise in open interest alongside a decline in price is said to indicate an influx of bearish short positions in the market. Futures short positions are leveraged bets that profit from a decline in the underlying asset's price.
"Price action suggested shorts piling in as we approached $31,000," crypto liquidity network Paradigm said in a market update published Tuesday, drawing attention to the uptick in open interest as prices turned lower from $31,040.
A similar pattern was seen on Wednesday following the release of the softer-than-expected (CPI) report that weakened the case for continued monetary tightening by the Federal Reserve.
Bitcoin printed a high of $31,000 immediately after the U.S. Labor Department released the CPI at 12:30 UTC only to fall back to $30,500 in the next one hour.
The retreat was once again accompanied by an increase in open interest in stablecoin-margined futures contracts.
The bearish activity around $31,000 has established the said level as key resistance to watch out for in the short-term. At press time, bitcoin changed hands at $30,350, per .
Edited by Shaurya Malwa.
Disclaimer: The content of this article solely reflects the author's opinion and does not represent the platform in any capacity. This article is not intended to serve as a reference for making investment decisions.
You may also like
ZEC Experiences Rapid Price Increase: Unveiling the Driving Force of the Cryptocurrency Surge
- Zcash's $9.24B market cap surge by late 2025 stems from strategic upgrades, institutional adoption, and robust on-chain activity. - Institutional investors like Reliance Global Group and proposed ETFs signal growing acceptance of Zcash's hybrid privacy-transparency model. - Network metrics show 1,300% transaction volume spikes, $47.5M fee revenue, and 23% shielded supply, reflecting privacy demand amid compliance needs. - Sustainability concerns arise over ETF centralization risks, speculative FOMO-drive

The Endurance of Entrepreneurs and Its Impact on Sustained Value Generation
- Founder resilience drives long-term value in undervalued sectors through strategic patience and unconventional leadership. - Chung Ju-yung's Hyundai built South Korea's infrastructure and automotive industry by rejecting hierarchies and embracing competition. - Bill Walsh's 49ers demonstrated disciplined execution and undervalued talent identification, mirroring investment principles in volatile markets. - Modern cases like Kodak's pharmaceutical pivot and Promescent's stigma-breaking strategy show resil

Apeing’s approach of targeting early adopters is driving the latest major trend in cryptocurrency investments
- Apeing ($APEING) leads 2025 crypto social feeds with a $0.0001 presale entry offering projected 10,000% ROI via limited whitelist access. - Binance Coin ($BNB), Litecoin ($LTC), Avalanche ($AVAX), and Chainlink ($LINK) gain traction for utility-driven infrastructure and transactional roles. - Market shifts toward community-driven assets follow Binance's legal challenges, with Apeing's meme branding and audit transparency attracting early adopters. - Shiba Inu ($SHIB) and FLOKI ($FLOKI) show resilience th

Kalshi’s Federal Argument Rejected as Court Upholds State Gambling Laws
- Nevada judge rules Kalshi's sports-event contracts as unlicensed gambling under state law, rejecting its federal derivatives defense. - Market reacts with betting firms like DraftKings and Flutter seeing stock gains, while Kalshi seeks emergency appeal to block enforcement. - Ruling strengthens state regulators' stance, potentially influencing cases in New Jersey, Illinois, and Ohio, highlighting federal-state jurisdiction tensions.

