In recent weeks, there has been a noticeable increase in demand for bitcoin (BTC) in the United States. This surge in interest can be attributed to Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell’s comments at the Jackson Hole symposium. However, it is essential to recognize that this rise in demand is primarily concentrated on BTC and has not extended to the broader cryptocurrency market.
One of the indicators of the increased Bitcoin demand in the U.S. is the spike in the Coinbase Premium, reaching 0.11%, the highest level since July. This rise suggests that U.S. investors are showing a keen interest in trading Bitcoin on the local platform compared to exchanges outside the country. The movement of BTC from non-U.S. exchanges to Coinbase is a typical behavior observed during bull markets and indicates a potential upward trend in Bitcoin’s price.
The Inter-exchange Flow Pulse (IFP) metric, which measures the one-year cumulative sum of BTC net flows between Coinbase and other exchanges, saw a significant increase. This surge in the IFP metric further confirmed that Bitcoin is flowing into the U.S.-based platform in response to the price premium and the growing demand in the U.S.
Perpetual Futures Market
In addition to the increased demand for Bitcoin, the perpetual futures market also witnessed a surge in Open Interest (OI). OI rose by approximately 10,000 BTC to 276,000 BTC, indicating that traders were initiating new long positions and buy orders outnumbered sell orders. This heightened activity in the futures market contributed to a 6% increase in Bitcoin’s price, pushing it from $60,000 to $65,000, the highest level since August 2.
Realized Profits and Apparent Demand
Despite the price rally, investors refrained from significant profit-taking, with realized profits amounting to $536 million. This is substantially lower than the multi-billion dollar profits seen during previous market peaks. The Apparent Bitcoin Demand 30-day growth has also declined from 496,000 BTC in early April to a negative 36,000 BTC. CryptoQuant suggests that an increase in apparent Bitcoin demand is crucial for the market to fully recover and reach new highs.