Crypto markets continued to trade sideways in a narrow range after Wednesday’s CPI report, with volatility remaining subdued and traders lacking a clear directional catalyst.
Bitcoin was hovering near $63,600 after U.S. inflation data broadly matched expectations. The reading helped ease concerns but did not generate enough momentum to push the market significantly higher or lower.
BTC was up 0.30% since midnight UTC, while the total cryptocurrency market capitalization declined 0.54% over 24 hours to approximately $2.18 trillion.
U.S. consumer prices rose 3.4% year over year in July, in line with forecasts. Core CPI slowed to 2.5% from 2.6% previously. Market participants are now awaiting the producer price index report at 12:30 UTC for a possible catalyst.
Meanwhile, S&P 500 futures were up 0.13%, while Nasdaq 100 futures were largely unchanged.
Derivatives Market
Crypto futures activity picked up, with 24-hour trading volume rising 6% to $147 billion. Despite the increase in turnover, aggregate open interest across cryptocurrency futures remained stable at roughly $116 billion.
XRP remains heavily positioned: XRP futures open interest held at about 2.67 billion tokens for a third consecutive day, marking its highest level since October. Negative 24-hour CVD suggests sellers are dominating market orders, increasing the possibility of XRP falling below $1. At the same time, perpetual funding rates near 8% annualized indicate that bullish positioning remains significant.
Bearish sentiment builds around ADA and BCH: Both assets recorded funding rates of -10% or lower, showing strong demand for short positions. Negative CVD readings also point to aggressive selling. ADA is particularly notable, with open interest sitting close to its record of 2.79 billion tokens, suggesting traders are establishing new shorts rather than simply closing existing long positions.
AVAX sees a sharp OI reversal: Avalanche’s AVAX, previously among the biggest open-interest gainers earlier in the week, became the largest OI decliner over the past 24 hours. LTC, LINK and SOL also recorded notable decreases in open interest.
Options volatility remains low: Implied volatility for bitcoin and ether stayed close to their lowest levels of the year, signaling that options traders continue to expect limited short-term price movement.
Short-term BTC bulls remain active: A trader spent $1.07 million on bitcoin call options with a $65,500 strike. The position reflects a near-term bullish outlook, with the contracts expiring Aug. 15.
Token Movers
Monero’s XMR advanced 3.15% since midnight UTC to around $404, taking its weekly gains above 11% and maintaining its lead over much of the broader crypto market.
Hyperliquid’s HYPE gained 1.75% to approximately $57 and is now up about 2% for the week, continuing its gradual climb.
FET rose 0.84%, while NEAR gained 0.94%, with several mid-cap altcoins outperforming bitcoin and ether.
Curve’s CRV dropped 8.38% over 24 hours to roughly $0.25, reversing part of Wednesday’s sharp rally. Even after the pullback, CRV remains more than 22% higher on the week following its breakout above a months-long descending trendline.
MORPHO was also among the laggards, slipping 1.51% since midnight UTC.
