Ethereum is facing the prospect of increased market volatility, triggered by a record surge in open interest on Kraken’s derivatives platform. According to Alexia Theodorou, Head of Derivatives at Kraken, open interest in ETH perpetual contracts hit an unprecedented high, touching 30,000 ETH earlier this week. The uptick suggests heightened speculative activity surrounding Ethereum, the second-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization.
The surge in derivatives activity is reportedly driven by growing institutional inflows into spot Ethereum exchange-traded funds (ETFs). However, despite increased interest, investors currently show no clear consensus on the direction Ethereum’s price might take. Funding rates remain slightly bullish, but the long-to-short ratio continues to linger significantly below its peak from January, pointing toward uncertainty rather than firm directional commitment.
According to Theodorou, evolving developments within the U.S. regulatory climate could provide an additional tailwind for Ethereum, propelling its performance in the months ahead.
Meanwhile, Ethereum reached a significant milestone in staking activity on June 10. Total ETH staked rose to an all-time high of 34.65 million tokens, equivalent to approximately 28.7% of the circulating supply. Analysts attribute this recent surge largely to high inflows into Ethereum spot ETFs, signaling broader and persistent institutional interest in Ethereum and select cryptocurrencies. Over a period of fifteen consecutive days, Ethereum ETFs registered positive inflows totaling around $837 million, underscoring the growing trend of institutional adoption.
