Gate News message, April 18 — According to Onchain Lens, a newly created wallet deposited $1.99 million USDC to Hyperliquid and opened a 5x leveraged long position in ASTER.

From 18:00 to 18:15 (UTC) on 2026-04-17, the BTC price fluctuated and trended downward within the 77097.4 to 77573.2 USDT range. Over these 15 minutes, the return rate recorded -0.49%, and the amplitude reached 0.61%. During this period, market trading was active; short-term volatility was amplified, and trading attention increased significantly. The main driver behind this abnormal move is that the overall leverage structure is bearish and long positions are fragile. At present, the BTC perpetual contract funding rate has remained negative for 11 consecutive days, indicating that the bears have the upper hand in the market. In addition, futures open interest (OI) is about 628.3 billion USDT, which is at a historical high. During the anomaly window, trading volume increased noticeably. On-chain data shows large amounts of BTC flowing from long-term holder addresses to exchanges, suggesting that active sell orders may have triggered longs to passively reduce positions, amplifying downward price pressure. Moreover, institutional positioning enthusiasm in the mainstream contract market has cooled off; liquidity boundaries have tightened, causing large-trade activity to have an amplified effect on market volatility. In the options market, implied volatility rose to 39.81%, increasing demand for downside protection and reflecting a defensive posture among market participants. Macro-environment volatility and some capital flowing into safe-haven assets, together with the recent regulatory uncertainty-related historical events, reinforced the move, pushing overall market risk appetite lower. Current BTC leverage risks still remain. If, in the future, there are concentrated sell-offs, volatility may be further amplified. It is recommended to continue monitoring sustained high OI levels, the persistence of negative funding rates, and on-chain transfers of large amounts of funds, and to stay alert for whale behavior and any disruptions to market sentiment caused by macro-policy developments. For subsequent price action, please watch key support levels, institutional and whale on-chain moves, and relevant global market news, and guard against short-term risks.

On April 17, analyst Ai姨 reported that trader "Maji" holds $58.78 million in long positions in BTC, ETH, and HYPE, with $2.597 million in unrealized gains. Maji's largest position is ETH, leveraged at 25x, and has set specific take-profit targets for each asset.

2026-04-17 12:45 to 2026-04-17 13:00 (UTC), the BTC price fluctuated within the 75720.6 to 76256.6 USDT range, and the return rate within 15 minutes reached +0.64%, with a range of 0.71%. During this period, market attention stayed high, trading activity increased, short-term volatility intensified, reflecting a rapid market move driven by concentrated capital. The main driving force behind this anomaly is that the long-position structure has been significantly amplified on coin-margined perpetual contracts, along with rapid inflows of funds into the long direction. Data shows that in the 12:45–13:00 window, the long contract positions for BTC surged from 8M to 11.4M, accounting for 57% to 77%. Short-term long funds concentrated into the market, and buy-side strength rose markedly, forming a direct impetus for price upside. At the same time, net inflows of ETF funds in the spot market increased, with holdings in major ETF products rising; institutional buying became more active, and the coordination strengthened spot price support. In addition, on-chain active addresses remained at a high level, trading volume expanded significantly, and BTC net inflows on mainstream trading platforms on April 17 also rose—together indicating increased market participation. Meanwhile, BTC broke through a key historical price range ($75,000), and technical buying as well as momentum-chasing funds entered in line with the move. Besides structural factors, global macro environmental risks remain elevated. Some capital is inclined toward BTC as a safe haven, and in the short term, multiple factors have converged, jointly pushing up the market’s volatility. In the near term, with the share of long positions and trading volume rising, if there is an unexpected news event or a reversal in sentiment, it is likely to trigger a rapid pullback. Key risk focus points include: changes in capital flows on mainstream trading platforms, the strength of support in the $75,000 range, and how macro events evolve. Users should be alert to short-term risks during periods of high volatility, monitor key on-chain and macro indicators in real time, and stay on top of more market updates.

From 2026-04-17 10:15 to 2026-04-17 10:30 (UTC), the BTC price rapidly fell within the 75214.3 – 75725.9 USDT range. The cumulative return over 15 minutes was -0.52%, and the amplitude reached 0.68%. During this period, market sentiment shifted from cautious to bearish, volatility on the board increased, mainstream trading pairs saw an increase in主动 sell-side volume, buy-side acceptance became constrained, and overall trading activity declined significantly. The primary driver behind this unusual move is that large holders (whales) concentrated their short-term inflows into exchanges. On-chain data shows that net inflows to addresses holding more than 1000 BTC per address changed from a steady state to a positive value, directly boosting exchange balances over the short term. Historical data indicates that whale inflows to exchanges are highly correlated with sell pressure in the medium to short term. In the same period, order book snapshots reflected a significant increase in the volume of主动 sell orders, and the成交价梯度 shifted downward, highlighting that weak market absorption capacity caused a short-term drop in price. In addition, in the derivatives market, the long/short positioning structure tilted toward shorts. The number of主动 sell contracts exceeded that of buys in a short time, and rising pressure to close long positions further intensified the downtrend. Market liquidity overall was relatively weak; the number of active addresses over the past 10 minutes was only about 42k, and both fees and the mempool were near their lowest levels of the recent month. Against a backdrop of insufficient capital absorption, the marginal impact of large sell orders was amplified. On the macro front, the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy tightening and industry media repeatedly downgraded BTC’s near-term expectations led investors’ risk appetite to generally decline, creating a resonance at the level of market sentiment. In the short term, it is still necessary to stay alert to liquidity risk and the price impact of one-way large transactions in specific trading pairs. Going forward, focus on key developments such as changes in whales’ on-chain holdings, exchange balances, and rebounds in activity metrics, as well as the potential impact of macro policy direction on risk assets. Relevant users should primarily guard against the risk of sharply amplified short-term price volatility and promptly track more market information.

Glassnode's RHODL ratio has hit 4.5, indicating that long-term Bitcoin holders dominate after a market correction. This level suggests potential future growth, contingent on exhausting short-term demand amidst a recovering market.

Between 2026-04-17 09:15 and 2026-04-17 09:30 (UTC), ETH fluctuated within the 2351.53 to 2376.99 USDT range. The 15-minute return recorded +0.65%, with a swing of 1.08%. Within this range, buying pressure significantly strengthened, with trades dominated by medium-sized orders, which increased market attention and amplified short-term volatility. The main drivers behind this anomaly are continued inflows of institutional capital into ETH spot ETFs, especially with cumulative net inflows over the past 4 days exceeding $212 million. On April 17 alone, the ETF added an additional $9.5 million in inflows, and spot buy orders expanded in sync within 15 minutes. Leveraged long positions in the derivatives market are the second-largest catalyst. From April 14 to 17, ETH futures open interest grew 26% week over week, indicating that capital via multiple paths is simultaneously betting on an upside move. The funding rate being neutral suggests the leveraged structure is temporarily healthy. In addition, global macro market risk appetite has rebounded (geopolitical tensions easing, and the Federal Reserve keeping rates unchanged), driving a broad rebound across mainstream risk assets, and the crypto market has attracted liquidity accordingly. At the industry level, major financial institutions are advancing filings for ETFs and trust products. Mining companies have increased their ETH holdings and also maintained active staking activity, further reinforcing medium- to long-term market expectations. Multiple factors overlap and resonate, amplifying volatility. On-chain transfers remain generally stable, and there is no abnormal concentration of fund flows migrating between exchanges. What needs attention is that although the current market is lifted by the resonance of institutional capital and leverage, the continuous growth of futures positions combined with the spot price failing to rise above the 2400 USDT area will bring the risk of forced liquidation. Meanwhile, if ETF subscription inflows slow down or macro liquidity reverses, ETH spot support could weaken. Please focus on tracking ETF net inflows, changes in futures open interest, the macro news backdrop, and nearby support and resistance levels, and stay alert to short-term volatility and potential abrupt adjustments. For more real-time market information, please keep watching.

A Citi study recommends combining Bitcoin and gold in investment portfolios for improved long-term returns, noting better performance in various market conditions. Wells Fargo predicts gold could rise to $8,000 by 2027, driven by central bank concerns. Meanwhile, Bitcoin funding rates have reached lows, historically marking turning points.

Gate News message: Gate has launched pre-market trading for CHIP/USDT perpetual futures, using USDT settlement. It supports 1x–10x long and short positions, and the leverage ratio can be selected by you when placing the order.

A new wallet has amassed over 3 billion DOGE, drawing attention to increased activity despite stable prices. Large transfers from Robinhood-linked wallets indicate a shift to long-term holding, possibly reducing sell pressure ahead of April 20 price movements.