Aave Leads the Crypto Rebound
Aave climbed 11% on speculation that its upcoming upgrade could introduce a token-burn mechanism, helping drive a broader recovery across digital assets. A total of 72 out of 100 constituents in the CoinDesk 100 were trading higher, despite the 10-year U.S. Treasury yield remaining at 5.234%.
Bitcoin also regained ground after Monday’s decline. BTC traded at $84,170 on Tuesday, up 0.82% since midnight UTC and 1.4% over the past 24 hours. The CoinDesk 100 rose 0.89% to 1,904.49.
The rebound came against a difficult backdrop for risk assets. The 10-year Treasury yield was still at 5.234% after finishing Monday above 5.2%, close to levels last seen in 2007. The 30-year yield stood at 5.549% after briefly moving above 5.56% Monday, near its highest level since 2004.
U.S. stocks also extended their decline for a second session. The Dow lost more than 300 points Monday, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite fell 0.8% and 0.9%, respectively. Stock futures were mixed Tuesday morning.
DeFi Outpaces Broader Crypto
DeFi tokens were once again at the center of the market recovery, marking the second time in a week that the sector has led gains.
The DeFi Select Index rose 5.0% since midnight. Aave advanced 11%, while Curve DAO Token gained 5.2%. The CoinDesk 80 increased 2.0%, compared with a 1.3% rise for the CoinDesk 5.
The picture changes over a 24-hour period, with the CoinDesk 5 up 1.7% versus a 0.44% gain for the CoinDesk 80.
Privacy-focused assets were among the weakest performers. Zcash dropped 4.1% to $1,422.35 and was down 8.4% over 24 hours. Dash fell 6.4% to $61.38, while Zcash was roughly 13% below its Friday price.
Outside crypto, Brent crude declined 0.85% to $97.92 and remained below $100 after Monday’s spike. Gold increased 0.68% to $4,140, while the dollar index gained 0.18% to 101.36.
Bitcoin Leverage Continues to Shrink
Crypto futures open interest remained nearly unchanged at $149.36 billion as of 09:45 UTC, compared with $150 billion the previous day.
Futures trading volume increased 26% to $218 billion after jumping 70% Monday. Liquidations remained stable at $389 million. The 24-hour long/short volume ratio was roughly balanced after shorts held a modest advantage Monday, at 46.9% versus 53.1%.
Bitcoin futures open interest fell to 644,000 BTC from 650,000 BTC, marking its lowest level since March 4.
At the same time, funding rates returned to positive territory after turning negative Monday, while the 24-hour OI-adjusted CVD was neutral. The figures suggest the bearish positioning among remaining traders has weakened.
Bitcoin Whales Favor Long Positions
Large Binance traders are showing stronger bullish positioning in Bitcoin futures.
The long/short ratio for whale positions reached 1.88, while whale accounts registered 1.31. Retail traders had a ratio of 1.24. Ratios above 1 indicate that long positions exceed shorts.
Leverage is also declining across other major altcoins. Ethereum and Solana open interest remained on a downward trend, while XRP reversed its recent increase.
XRP open interest fell to 2.37 billion tokens after reaching a four-week peak of 2.46 billion XRP.
LINK Draws Fresh Futures Demand
Chainlink’s LINK gained 14% over 24 hours, placing it among the strongest-performing tokens.
Open interest in LINK futures increased 4% to its highest level since Aug. 22, indicating that traders may be adding new long positions. LINK was also one of the few major tokens with positive 24-hour CVD, alongside QNT, ETH and TRX.
Funding remained around 2% annualized, suggesting demand for upside exposure without excessive leverage.
Zcash remained under selling pressure, falling for a third consecutive day. Its futures open interest also declined, indicating that some long positions were being closed. ZEC recorded the most negative 24-hour CVD among major tokens, reflecting aggressive selling.
Options Market Shifts Toward Calls
Bitcoin and Ether 30-day implied volatility remained close to year-to-date lows following a modest rebound Monday. Bitcoin’s BVIV reached 37.4%.
The low volatility readings indicate that traders continue to anticipate relatively contained price swings.
Bitcoin’s seven-day and one-month put-call skews also turned slightly negative, signaling that calls have regained a premium over puts.
The shift follows Monday’s activity, when the $84,000 put was the most-traded BTC option. Over the latest 24-hour period, calls at $85,000, $90,000 and $95,000 recorded the strongest volume.
In Ether options, the $3,000 call expiring Oct. 9 became the most actively traded contract, replacing the $2,850 call expiring Oct. 20 that led Monday’s activity.
Aave, QNT and CRV Extend Gains
Aave traded around $166.55, up 11% since midnight UTC and 13% over 24 hours, making it the strongest performer among CoinDesk 20 constituents.
The rally followed speculation surrounding “Aavenomics 3.0.” Aave founder Stani Kulechov said the planned upgrade could include a token-burn mechanism.
Quant also resumed its advance, rising 17% to $269.58 and gaining 13% over 24 hours. The move followed a 39% jump Friday and a 16% pullback Monday, leaving QNT above its level before the earlier surge.
Curve DAO Token gained 5.2% since midnight and was up 22% over 24 hours at around $0.40. It recorded the largest 24-hour increase within the index, with most of the move occurring during Monday’s U.S. session.
Internet Computer rose 8.3% to $3.39 and was up 14% over 24 hours, while Avalanche gained 7% to $11.35 and advanced 8.4% over the same period.
Hedera slipped 3.2% to $0.12 after Monday’s rally but retained a 9.5% gain over 24 hours. Litecoin declined 0.51% to $68.86 and remained up 2.3% over the same period as the token’s halving-related trade cooled.
