Aave Drives DeFi Higher
Aave rose 11% Tuesday as traders reacted to speculation that a planned upgrade could introduce a token-burn feature. The move helped lift the broader crypto market, with 72 of the 100 CoinDesk 100 constituents trading higher.
Bitcoin recovered from Monday’s losses to reach $84,170, gaining 0.82% since midnight UTC and 1.4% over the previous 24 hours. The CoinDesk 100 index added 0.89% to 1,904.49.
The rebound came despite continued pressure from the bond market. The 10-year Treasury yield stood at 5.234% after closing Monday above 5.2%, a level near its highest since 2007. The 30-year yield was 5.549%, following a move above 5.56% Monday that brought it close to levels last seen in 2004.
U.S. equities also remained under pressure. The Dow fell more than 300 points Monday, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.8% and 0.9%, respectively. Futures were mixed Tuesday morning.
DeFi Tokens Outperform
DeFi assets once again led the crypto market higher, marking the second DeFi-driven move in a week.
The DeFi Select Index gained 5.0% since midnight. Aave jumped 11%, while Curve DAO Token advanced 5.2%. The CoinDesk 80 rose 2.0%, compared with a 1.3% increase in the CoinDesk 5.
Over a 24-hour period, the CoinDesk 5 was ahead, gaining 1.7% versus 0.44% for the CoinDesk 80.
Privacy tokens bucked the broader recovery. Zcash fell 4.1% to $1,422.35 and was down 8.4% over 24 hours. Dash declined 6.4% to $61.38. Zcash has lost roughly 13% since Friday.
In traditional markets, Brent crude slipped 0.85% to $97.92, remaining below $100 after Monday’s rise. Gold gained 0.68% to $4,140, while the dollar index advanced 0.18% to 101.36.
Futures Leverage Continues to Contract
Total crypto futures open interest stood at $149.36 billion at 09:45 UTC, little changed from $150 billion a day earlier.
Trading volume increased 26% to $218 billion after surging 70% Monday. Liquidations remained around $389 million, while the 24-hour long/short volume ratio moved back toward balance. On Monday, sellers held a slight edge at 53.1% compared with 46.9% for buyers.
Bitcoin futures open interest dropped to 644,000 BTC from 650,000 BTC, its lowest level since March 4. Funding rates returned to positive territory after turning negative Monday, while the 24-hour OI-adjusted CVD remained neutral.
The combination suggests the bearish bias among remaining BTC futures positions has eased.
Binance Whales Increase BTC Longs
Whale positioning on Binance has become more bullish.
The long/short ratio stood at 1.88 for whale positions and 1.31 for whale accounts, compared with 1.24 among retail traders. A reading above 1 indicates that longs exceed shorts.
Leverage across major altcoins continued to decline. ETH and SOL futures open interest remained lower, while XRP reversed its previous increase.
XRP open interest fell to 2.37 billion XRP after touching a four-week high of 2.46 billion XRP.
LINK Attracts New Long Positions
LINK jumped 14% over 24 hours, making it one of the strongest performers in the market.
Open interest in LINK futures increased 4% to its highest level since Aug. 22, pointing to fresh long exposure. LINK also posted positive 24-hour CVD alongside QNT, ETH and TRX.
Funding remained modest at roughly 2% annualized, suggesting demand for bullish exposure without excessive leverage.
Zcash remained under pressure, recording its third consecutive daily decline. Falling futures open interest alongside the price suggested that traders were closing long positions.
ZEC also posted the most negative 24-hour CVD among major tokens, highlighting persistent selling pressure.
Options Traders Shift Toward Calls
Bitcoin and Ether’s 30-day implied volatility remained near year-to-date lows after a small rebound Monday. Bitcoin’s BVIV reached 37.4%.
The readings indicate that traders continue to anticipate relatively subdued volatility.
BTC’s seven-day and one-month put-call skews also turned slightly negative, indicating that calls were once again commanding a premium.
The shift followed Monday’s options activity, when the $84,000 put was the most traded BTC contract. Over the latest 24 hours, trading was concentrated in calls at the $85,000, $90,000 and $95,000 strikes.
For ETH, the $3,000 call expiring Oct. 9 was the most traded contract, replacing Monday’s leading $2,850 call expiring Oct. 20.
Aave and Other Altcoins Extend Gains
Aave traded at $166.55, up 11% since midnight and 13% over 24 hours, making it the strongest CoinDesk 20 performer.
The rally followed speculation surrounding “Aavenomics 3.0.” Aave founder Stani Kulechov said the upcoming upgrade may introduce a token-burn mechanism.
QNT resumed its advance, gaining 17% to $269.58 and 13% over 24 hours. The token had jumped 39% Friday before falling 16% Monday, leaving it above its starting point for that move.
CRV gained 5.2% since midnight and 22% over 24 hours to around $0.40, the largest 24-hour gain in the index. Most of its increase came during Monday’s U.S. session.
ICP rose 8.3% to $3.39 and gained 14% over 24 hours. AVAX added 7% to $11.35 and was up 8.4% over the same period.
HBAR fell 3.2% to $0.12 after Monday’s rally but remained 9.5% higher over 24 hours. LTC slipped 0.51% to $68.86 and was still up 2.3% over the rolling 24-hour period as its halving-related momentum faded.
