(Bloomberg) -- The futures market is suggesting that the record-breaking rally in Bitcoin triggered by Donald Trump’s victory in the US presidential election may just be getting started.
“We saw an immediate risk-on rotation across derivatives amidst the surge,” said Vetle Lunde, head of research at K33 Research. “CME’s basis has surged from 7% yesterday to highs above 15% today, while perps have moved from trading below the spot market to its largest premiums to the spot market since March.”
Bitcoin futures contracts on the CME derivatives exchange are among the most popular ways for the US-based institutional investors to capture upside in a bull market. The so-called basis, which is the difference between the spot market price and the price of future contracts, was muted in recent days before the election. Meanwhile, the perpetual futures contracts, which are among the most popular options for offshore investors, are seeing more interest with a higher funding rate, indicating rising demand for leverage in that market.
Bitcoin broke $75,000 for the first time amid expectations that a second Trump presidency will bring more crypto-friendly policies and regulation. The Bitcoin options market had set sight on $80,000 for expiries in late November even before yesterday’s vote.
“Trump brings the promise of decreased regulatory intervention in the US, which crypto investors have been howling for the past few years,” said Michael Safai, founding partner at quantitative trading firm Dexterity Capital.
While the exchange-traded funds backed by the largest cryptocurrency saw one of the biggest outflows on Monday, traders are expecting a reversal and potentially much higher positive flows during US hours on Wednesday.
“The European session has been somewhat docile, but BTC seems to find support at former all-time highs, a welcoming signal for further momentum to the upside,” Lunde said. “We anticipate strong ETF flows today on the backdrop of burgeoning CME premiums (carry opportunities) and post-election clarity, which should support strong performance.”
The rally does bring the risk of price corrections, some traders said. The previous bull market run in March after the launch of Bitcoin ETFs triggered large liquidations in both directions.
“Would be cautious for a correction at those levels due to profit taking but the overall trend for the next few quarters we expect to go higher,” said Nathanaël Cohen, co-founder at INDIGO Fund.
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