Hedge funds have record short positions in Ether (ETH) Futures Trade at Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME), which raises questions about the motivations behind these positions.

At first glance, the data could suggest that sophisticated market players expect price images as discussed on social media. However, this is not exactly accurate; Berries trading or arbitrage -acting, which primarily drives the record short interest, but some of these short futures -trades represent directly bearish bets on cryptocurrency per day. Observers.

From the week ended February 4th, hedge funds ended a net short position of 11,341 contracts in CME futures, according to data traced by Zerohedge and Kobeissi letter. The number has risen 40% in one week and 500% since November, according to the Kobeissi letter.

“There is evidence that suggests that a remarkable part of the short interest in ether -futures is tied to the carrier. Despite the relative underprestiation of the makrovind and ether, the US ETF has remained stable in the last three months, coinciding with An increase in futures in short interest – potentially signaling an uptick in base trades, “Thomas Erdösi, head of product at CF Benchmarks, Coindesk said.

CF -Benchmarks gives the reference rates that support CME’s Bitcoin (BTC) and Etherivates.

Berries trades, also known as basic trades, seek to take advantage of price differences between the two markets. In ETH’s case, it involves hedge funds that map cme futures while at the same time buying the site ether ETFs listed in the US

“Especially hedge funds appear to be active in this trade through regulated venues, in this case selling cme ether futures while buying etha [BlackRock’s iShares Ethereum Trust ETF]. In addition, Ethereum’s basis has occasionally exceeded Bitcoin’s, making Ether Carry dealer more attractive, “Erdosi said.

Erdosi explained that the short interest rate has increased by approx. $ 470 million recently, which is equivalent to the influx of about $ 480 million in spot -TFs that validate the argument.

That said, the overall short interest in CME futures could involve some direct bearish bets to uncover from downward risks in ether. Dealers could map Ether Futures as a hedge against long efforts in the ALTCOIN complex.

“However, not all hedge fund, a short interest, is necessarily driven by the basic dealer – some may be direct shorts considering ETH’s hanging performance, especially against other programmable settlement chains such as sun and a wider rally in Altcoins,” Erdosi added.

ETH settings on both the CME and offshore giant discharge show a bias for put options that expire in the short term. It is a sign of lingering downward fears in ether.

A PUT setting gives the buyer the right, but not the obligation to sell the underlying asset at a predetermined price at a later date. A put buyer is an implicit Bearish on the market who wants to uncover against or profit from an expected price drop in the underlying asset. A call purchase is implicit Bullish.

Long-end etho options show more expensive calls, a sign of bullish long-term expectations.