Ethereum braces for volatility as Kraken open interest hits 30k ETH

Open interest in Ethereum has reached an all-time high on Kraken, suggesting coming volatility in either direction.

Ethereum (ETH) could soon experience heightened price swings, according to new data from Kraken. Alexia Theodorou, Head of Derivatives at Kraken, said in a June 10 obtained by crypto.news that open interest on Ethereum contracts hit an all-time high, a sign that speculative activity is ramping up.

“Open interest in ETH perpetuals on Kraken reached an all-time high of 30,000 ETH earlier this week, signaling a notable uptick in speculative activity around the second-largest cryptocurrency by market cap,” Alexia Theodorou, Kraken.

The likely catalyst for the rise in derivatives activity is growing institutional inflows into spot Ethereum exchange-traded funds, Theodorou explained. However, it remains unclear which direction these flows may drive Ethereum in the near term. Rather than indicating conviction, the current positioning appears to reflect anticipation of volatility.

“While funding rates remain mildly bullish, the market has yet to form a clear directional consensus, with the long/short ratio still well below its January peak,” Alexia Theodorou, Kraken.

Still, pro-innovation developments in the U.S. regulatory landscape could act as a potential tailwind for Ethereum in the months ahead, she added.

Ethereum reaches major staking milestone

On June 10, staked Ethereum reached an all-time high of 34.65 million ETH, representing 28.7% of all circulating supply. According to analysts from B2BINPAY, spot ETF inflows were likely behind this milestone as well.

Ethereum ETFs saw consecutive 15 days of positive inflows, which totaled $837 million. These could be indicative of a broader institutional interest in Ethereum, as well as other established altcoins, B2BINPAY suggests.