Leveraged BTC Longs Make a Comeback as Perpetuals Open Interest Rises

Traders are returning to bold bets on Bitcoin perpetual futures, signaling renewed confidence despite last week’s sharp volatility.

Singapore-based QCP Capital reported Monday that open interest in BTC perpetuals—futures contracts without expiration dates—is climbing, alongside rising funding rates on both centralized and decentralized exchanges. The trends indicate a growing bias toward long positions.

“Optimism is re-emerging in the highly leveraged perpetual space. Rather than retreating after last week’s liquidations, leveraged longs are back in force,” the firm’s market insights team said.

According to QCP, cumulative open interest in BTC perpetuals worldwide has risen from $42.8 billion to $43.6 billion. Meanwhile, annualized funding rates on major platforms like Deribit have jumped to 13%, reflecting traders’ willingness to pay fees to maintain long positions. Hyperliquid’s long bias has also climbed to 57%, up from 36% the previous week.

The data suggest last week’s volatility, which saw BTC dip below $109,000 and triggered over $700 million in liquidations of leveraged longs—the largest single-day figure in six months—has done little to deter traders. Bitcoin’s price has since rebounded to near $114,000.

QCP notes that investors’ readiness to pay double-digit funding rates underscores growing conviction that BTC could continue to advance during the historically bullish fourth quarter.