Crypto derivatives hit about $1B in liquidations as BTC short interest builds

ChainCatcher reported that the crypto derivatives market saw roughly $1 billion in liquidations over the past 24 hours. Bitcoin's futures open interest rose for a second straight day to 778,000 BTC, with a notable jump late Thursday pointing to traders adding short exposure as the downtrend deepened. Ethereum open interest has held steady at around 14 million ETH since June 15, indicating ETH traders have not ramped up shorting during the pullback. Open-interest-adjusted 24-hour cumulative volume data shows shorts continue to dominate across the top 25 tokens, with BNB, SOL and TON as the main exceptions. Implied volatility also moved higher. Bitcoin's 30-day annualized implied volatility index climbed to 53%, the highest level since June 7, while Ethereum's rose to 66%. In options, Bitcoin skew neared 30% last week as put premiums widened. Notable block activity included July 10 expiry put options struck at $53,000, underscoring strong demand for downside hedges.