Bitcoin Stays Near $64K as Monero and Hyperliquid Lead Crypto Gains

Crypto markets are stuck in a narrow, low-volatility range after Wednesday’s CPI release, with traders showing little conviction in either direction.

Bitcoin hovered around $63,600 after the U.S. inflation data came in line with expectations, easing some market anxiety but failing to provide a strong catalyst for a major move.

BTC has gained about 0.30% since midnight UTC, while the total crypto market capitalization slipped 0.54% over the past 24 hours to roughly $2.18 trillion.

July’s CPI increased 3.4% year over year, matching economists’ estimates. Core CPI also moderated, falling to 2.5% annually from 2.6%. Traders are now looking toward the producer price index report, scheduled for 12:30 UTC, for a potential catalyst in an otherwise subdued market.

In U.S. equities, S&P 500 futures rose 0.13%, while Nasdaq 100 futures remained broadly unchanged.

Derivatives Positioning

Activity in crypto futures remains elevated. Twenty-four-hour trading volume reached $147 billion, a 6% daily increase, while total open interest across cryptocurrency futures remained largely unchanged at around $116 billion.

XRP positioning remains elevated: XRP futures open interest has stayed around 2.67 billion tokens for a third consecutive day, its highest level since October. The 24-hour cumulative volume delta remains negative, suggesting more bearish market orders are being executed than bullish ones. The setup could point to a potential move below $1. However, perpetual futures funding rates remain near 8% annualized, indicating that bullish positions still carry a premium.

ADA and BCH remain heavily bearish: Funding rates for both assets have fallen to -10% or below, reflecting a strong preference for short positions. Their negative 24-hour CVDs also signal aggressive selling. ADA stands out because its open interest remains close to its recent record of 2.79 billion tokens, indicating traders may be building new short positions as participation approaches peak levels.

AVAX loses its momentum: Avalanche’s AVAX, which ranked among the strongest open-interest gainers earlier in the week, has now recorded the largest OI decline over the past 24 hours. Litecoin, Chainlink and Solana also posted notable OI reductions.

Implied volatility remains subdued: Options markets continue to price in limited near-term movement, with implied volatility for bitcoin and ether hovering close to their lowest levels of the year.

Bullish BTC bets persist: One trader purchased a significant block of bitcoin call options at a $65,500 strike, paying $1.07 million in upfront premiums. The position represents a short-term bullish wager, with the contracts set to expire Aug. 15.

Token Performance

Monero’s XMR rose 3.15% since midnight UTC to around $404, extending its weekly advance beyond 11% as the privacy-focused cryptocurrency continues to outperform the wider market.

Hyperliquid’s HYPE gained 1.75% to approximately $57, maintaining its gradual upward trend and bringing its weekly increase to about 2%.

Fetch.ai’s FET climbed 0.84%, while NEAR Protocol’s NEAR added 0.94%, with several mid-cap altcoins outperforming bitcoin and ether.

Curve’s CRV retreated 8.38% over the past 24 hours to about $0.25, giving back part of Wednesday’s rally. Despite the decline, the token remains more than 22% higher for the week after breaking above a downward trendline that had capped its price for months.

DeFi token MORPHO was among the weaker performers, falling 1.51% since midnight UTC.

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