
Hedge Funds Hold Record Short Bets on Bitcoin
Hedge funds and commodities trading advisors increased their bearish bets on bitcoin futures to record levels at the end of the first quarter, according to a report citing the latest data from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
Leveraged funds upped their short positions in the Chicago Mercantile Exchange’s (CME) standard bitcoin (BTC) futures contracts to 16,102, the highest level since they began trading in late 2017, according to latest CFTC data.
With each contract representing BTC5, institutions are apparently short more than BTC80,000, which is worth $5.4 billion at current rates, according to Coindesk.
This unprecedented increase in short wagers may imply a high interest from hedge funds in carry trade opportunities, as investors seek to capitalize on three-month futures premiums of more than 10% following bitcoin’s recent price slide from levels above $73,500 in March, noted Coindesk, citing Velo Data.