Nov 5, 2026, 7:27 a.m. EST
3 min read
This is an excerpt from CoinDesk newsletter ‘Daybook.’ Sign up here, if you haven’t already.
“Bitcoin is resilient,” CZ, founder of Binance, stated on X.
This perspective aligns with how bitcoin BTC$75,940.79 and the broader digital asset market bounced back and maintained their gains following an initial reflexive drop during early Wednesday trading in Asia, which was triggered by reports of a Democratic sweep in the midterm elections.
Nonetheless, as of this writing, two critical elements are missing, both of which suggest caution for bullish investors.
To begin with, there is little indication of new leverage entering the ecosystem, which is clear from bitcoin’s futures open interest (OI) remaining relatively flat at $53.40 billion, based on metrics from Coinglass. The situation is identical for numerous other tokens, including SOL, HYPE, DOGE, NEAR and others, where OI has stayed steady or dropped while prices climbed.
This indicates a lack of incoming fresh capital, which typically chases upward momentum during market rallies.
Secondly, indicators on the spot side remain subdued as well. U.S.-based spot ETFs brought in a mere $74 million from investors on Wednesday. This comes after net outflows exceeding $400 million over the initial two trading sessions and upwards of $500 million in the previous month, as reported by tracking data from SoSoValue.
The Coinbase Premium gauge, a widely followed metric used to measure relative demand among U.S. investors, continues to be negative. Historically, this metric tends to turn positive during sustained bull runs.
Analyzing futures and spot market data together suggests that recent price gains were primarily fueled by the liquidation of short positions. Over the past 24 hours, crypto futures shorts totaling $450 million were wiped out, with BTC alone accounting for $300 million of that total — marking the highest level since September 21.
Market analysts at Marex argue that spot demand must now step up.
“BTC reclaimed $80k as lower yields, a weaker dollar and cheaper oil revived the risk bid. Shorts funded the first leg. Spot flows and a cleaner derivatives structure now need to carry the second,” they noted via email.
India-based, FIU-registered platform Giottus characterized the movement as a relief bounce and is waiting for clearer confirmation signals before committing.
“Treat this as a relief rally until stronger confirmation emerges. Avoid chasing sharp moves. Use staggered entries, keep position sizes modest and watch ETF flows and upcoming US labour-market data before increasing exposure,” stated Vikram Subburaj, CEO of the exchange. Stay alert!
Read more: For analysis of today’s activity in altcoins and derivatives, see Crypto Markets Today . For a comprehensive list of events this week, see CoinDesk’s “Crypto Week Ahead.”
This implies that bitcoin is trading at a slight discount on the Nasdaq-listed exchange Coinbase compared to the global offshore exchange Binance.
Originally published at https://www.coindesk.com/daybook-us/2026/11/05/bitcoin-is-resilient-but-leverage-is-missing-and-demand-still-tepid.
