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Ethereum Open Interest down 66% while Binance holds 35% market share
Since its last all time high, the ongoing correction on Ethereum continues to put investors under significant strain, particularly traders active in derivatives markets. Open interest on Ethereum has fallen by more than 66%, dropping from $33.3B to $11.4B. In other words, the notional value committed to futures contracts has been divided by three, highlighting the scale of the market disengagement. This sharp contraction in open interest directly reflects the impact of the correction on leveraged positions. The decline has been widespread across major platforms. Binance recorded a 68.2% drop in ETH open interest, OKX saw a 63.5% decrease, while Bybit experienced the steepest fall at 72.6%. Despite this, Binance still holds the largest share of Ethereum open interest, accounting for more than 35% of positions among the CEXs considered, followed by Gate.io with 23.4% and Bybit with 14.4%. Several factors explain this abrupt drop in open interest : - The current environment remains uncertain, and the continuation of Bitcoin’s correction is prompting traders to reduce risk exposure and close positions. - The volatility has triggered a wave of liquidations, particularly among investors attempting to trade against the prevailing trend wich erased a large amount of liquidity - Because this is notional open interest, the decline in ETH’s price mechanically reduces the value of outstanding futures positions even when contract sizes remain unchanged. In this context, the sharp contraction in open interest signals a period of stress in Ethereum’s derivatives market. While this deleveraging phase may help cleanse excess leverage and strengthen market structure over the medium term, it also reflects the strong risk aversion currently dominating sentiment. Until confidence and market sentiment recover sustainably, derivatives are likely to remain a primary source of selling pressure.