Bitcoin Holds Range as Derivatives Turn Defensive; WLFI Token Hits Record Low
Bitcoin (BTC $109,574.46) slipped 0.7% over the past 24 hours, including a 0.9% decline after midnight UTC. Prices remain stuck in the range established since late August, though short-term momentum has tilted lower.
The CoinDesk 20 Index also weakened, falling 1.3% since midnight with nearly every constituent in negative territory. XRP (XRP $2.8136) was the lone gainer, edging up less than 0.1%.
Derivatives Lean Bearish
Caution is evident across derivatives markets. Funding rates for perpetual futures eased, while demand for downside protection drove put option activity above calls. Deribit noted significant open interest clustering between $105,000 and $110,000 strikes, pointing to persistent hedging. Roughly $4.5 billion in bitcoin options will expire Friday, coinciding with the U.S. August jobs report.
Perpetual futures open interest has cooled from nearly $33 billion to $30 billion, while the three-month annualized basis compressed to 5%–6% on Binance, OKX, and Deribit. Options data are mixed: the implied volatility curve suggests higher long-term swings, but the 25-delta skew remains slightly negative, reflecting near-term bearishness. Calls, however, accounted for 63% of 24-hour options volumes.
CoinGlass reported $225 million in liquidations in the past day, evenly split between longs and shorts. ETH led with $65 million, followed by BTC at $46 million. Binance data flagged $110,250 as a key downside liquidation level.
Trump-Branded WLFI Token Sinks
Separately, Trump-linked DeFi token Word Liberty Financial (WLFI) slumped 21% to $0.174, its lowest level since launch. Early investors appear to be cashing out, with one trader reportedly turning $15 million into $250 million, while another lost $2.2 million on WLFI futures.
Despite political branding, the token shows little to set it apart from other DeFi projects, leading to fading interest. Traders compared its trajectory to January’s TRUMP memecoin, which plunged 89% after its debut.
WLFI’s team pledged on X that treasury tokens would be governed by community votes and not sold on the market, but the announcement failed to stem selling pressure.
