OKB and FART Coin Surge as Ether Approaches Record Highs

The crypto market saw significant gains early Wednesday, with altcoins such as OKB, PUMP, BNSOL, JITOSOL, and SOL experiencing double-digit increases. Meanwhile, Bitcoin's price rose by 0.4% but remains 2% lower than its levels from 30 days ago.

Analyst Alex Kuptsikevich noted that investors may be selling Bitcoin to fund altcoin purchases, indicating a shift in market sentiment rather than a reversal.

Derivatives Positioning

• Ether's (ETH) rise is supported by increased capital inflows into CME-listed futures, with open interest climbing to 1.85 million ETH from 1.5 million ETH in the past week.
• Traders are positioning for upside potential, shown by an annualized three-month basis exceeding 10%. Bitcoin's (BTC) CME basis remains near 7.5%.
• The altcoin market shows stability despite Ether's surge, with perpetual funding rates around 10% for major tokens.
• Open interest in Monero (XMR) reached its highest level since December, coinciding with a price drop to $245.
• On Deribit, ETH traders pursued calls at strike prices of $5,000 and higher, indicating bullish sentiment, with ETH DVOL around 70%.
• Bitcoin's implied volatility remained steady, with demand for higher-strike OTM calls noted on the OTC network Paradigm.

Token Talk

• OKB surged to a record $142 (+200%) following a permanent supply cut to 21 million tokens announced by OKX, alongside a PP upgrade boosting throughput and reducing fees.
• OKX will also decommission OKTChain, converting balances to OKB starting August 15.
• Eden Network is shutting down all services due to unprofitable competition in the MEV relay space.
• FARTCOIN rose by 17% as whale wallets increased supply by 2%, with key support at $0.74 if momentum fades.