Bitcoin traders add $2.3 billion in contracts as bullish bets get pricier

Bitcoin traders are paying more to keep their bullish bets open, even as they add billions of dollars in positions ahead of Friday’s U.S. jobs report. According to CoinDesk (direct), outstanding bitcoin derivatives contracts have increased by about $2.3 billion since Sept. 30. The price has risen alongside that buildup, but the recovery in trading activity comes with a challenge: holding a bet on further gains is becoming more expensive.

Open interest—the amount of futures and perpetual contracts still outstanding—reached approximately 653,000 BTC, worth $56.2 billion, according to CoinGlass figures cited by CoinDesk. That compares with 626,000 BTC on Sept. 30. The increase of 27,000 BTC represents a gain of roughly 4.3%. These contracts give traders exposure to bitcoin’s price, and the increase shows that more positions are being added rather than closed or settled.

More exposure, higher costs

Bitcoin rose from around $83,500 to $86,500 over the same period. Open interest alone cannot show whether traders expect the price to rise or fall: it counts outstanding contracts, not the direction of the bets behind them. But when prices and open interest climb together, that combination suggests fresh positions are helping support the advance. It is a sign of renewed participation, rather than proof that all the new exposure is bullish.

The clearer indication of demand for higher prices comes from perpetual funding rates, which increased from around 3% to 10%. Funding is a regular payment between traders on opposite sides of perpetual futures, contracts designed to track the spot, or cash-market, price. When the rate is positive, traders positioned for gains pay those positioned for declines. A higher positive rate therefore makes bullish positions more costly to maintain.

CoinDesk reported that the rise in funding points to stronger demand for bullish exposure ahead of the jobs report. Traders are not simply adding contracts; those betting on gains are accepting a higher cost to stay in the market. That willingness supports the picture of improving sentiment, although it also increases the burden on traders who keep their positions open.

A rebound from a low base

The scale of the recovery needs context. At the end of September, open interest of approximately 625,000 BTC was close to its lowest level in 12 months. The latest increase therefore marks a rebound from subdued activity. Higher funding also leaves leveraged traders—those using borrowed exposure—more vulnerable if bitcoin’s price suddenly reverses, even while it signals a more bullish market.

Crypto-linked shares joined the advance in Friday’s premarket trading. Strategy, the largest corporate holder of bitcoin, and Strive each gained around 3%. Coinbase and Robinhood rose approximately 2%, according to CoinDesk.

Friday’s U.S. jobs report is the next event to watch. Bitcoin enters that release with more contracts outstanding and a higher price, but also with a steeper cost for traders maintaining bullish positions.