First Mover Americas: BTC Starts June Trading Flat, Alts Decline
The latest moves in crypto markets in context for June 1, 2022.
![(KYRYLO SHEVTSOV/Getty images)](https://www.coindesk.com/resizer/ao3r_ojjfB-5I2eP14fjduW5h-w=/567x378/filters:quality(80):format(jpg)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/coindesk/WE3KCEMFWJDP7D2ORVW7LZYBH4.jpg)
Good morning, and welcome to First Mover. I’m Lyllah Ledesma, here to take you through the latest in crypto markets, news and insights.
- Price point: Bitcoin trades flat and altcoins underperform.
- Market Moves: BTC futures now account for 63% of the open interest in the crypto futures market.
Price Point
Bitcoin (BTC) opened its first day of trading in June at around $31,800. The world’s largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization is trading relatively flat and hasn't seen much price movement overnight.
Bitcoin has fallen 15% from this time a year ago, when it was trading at around $37,000.
![June 1, 2021 BTC traded at a low of $35,699. (Trading View)](https://www.coindesk.com/resizer/Lj5W8lQcRPDAnZl_QEaXiUJ8-7A=/560x283/filters:quality(80):format(jpg)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/coindesk/OQ6VCTHCUFHS5LTUGJLF2YUOXY.png)
Ether is trading at $1,900 at the time of writing and is down 26% from this time a year ago.
According to Charles Storry, head of growth at Phuture, a crypto index platform, the sell-off is just beginning.
“We are entering a 12-18 month bear market. I am bullish long term as this is short term fear and panic selling,” Storry said.
Tron’s TRX was the only gainer, climbing by 10% over the last 24 hours.
Optimism (OP), the token that powers the layer 2 Ethereum scaling tool Optimism, has dropped 65% from its listing price after its much anticipated airdrop.
Market Moves
Bitcoin Dominance in Derivatives
Open interest in bitcoin futures and perpetuals now account for 63% of the open interest in the crypto futures market. In early April, open interest was around 50%, according to data from Arcane Research. This has come as the global interest in the crypto market has seen a sharp decline.
BTC futures accounting for 63% of the crypto market are at their highest level since October 2021.
Bitcoin’s dominance in the derivatives market mirrors the cryptocurrency’s dominance in the wider market, which trended higher in May.
![Open interest in crypto futures vs bitcoin open interest dominance (Arcane Research)](https://www.coindesk.com/resizer/lJx9YfQcriBgNOwHftGjc0OLhQ4=/560x437/filters:quality(80):format(jpg)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/coindesk/S6GCI2P3U5CXXM5HGILF7RZUDQ.png)
Joshua Lim, head of derivatives at Genesis Global Trading, said that this data suggests the speculative interest in altcoins is diminishing.
“Alts have had a rough run and a lot of liquidations and de-risking has taken speculators out of the market,” Lim said.
Latest Headlines
- Binance Labs Raises $500M Fund for Web 3, Blockchain Investments The new fund will invest in cryptocurrency companies in three stages spanning from incubation to late-stage growth.
- Crypto Exchanges Should Lose Licenses for Laundering Breaches, EU Regulators Say The advice comes as legislators reach the closing stages of the landmark crypto MiCA law.
- Tech Experts 'Counter-Lobby' Washington Criticizing Crypto, Blockchain: Report A letter from 26 technologists refers to crypto as risky, flawed and unproven.
- Polygon Increases KYC Scrutiny of Potential Investments and Grants in India Polygon is now requiring extensive customer details for prospective partners in India as regulatory scrutiny there grows, according to a source.
Today’s newsletter was edited by Lyllah Ledesma and produced by Parikshit Mishra and Stephen Alpher.