analysts pointed out that the open interest (OI) of Bitcoin futures — an important indicator measuring participation in the derivatives market — has increased by nearly 13% since the beginning of this year, which may reflect a recovering risk appetite for crypto assets in the market.

CryptoQuant analyst "Darkfost" stated on Monday that over the past three months, Bitcoin futures OI has dropped from 381,000 BTC to 314,000 BTC, a cumulative decline of 17.5%. This change occurred after Bitcoin’s price retraced about 36% since early October, "reflecting the market entering a de-risking phase and concentrated liquidation of leveraged positions."

However, Darkfost believes that Bitcoin futures OI may be in the early stages of recovery.

According to Coinglass data, OI has rebounded from $54 billion on January 1st (an 8-month low) to over $61 billion on January 19th. Additionally, OI hit an 8-week high of $66 billion on January 15th. The analyst stated: "Currently, open interest is showing signs of gradual recovery, indicating that market risk appetite is slowly returning."