Bitcoin futures suffered a massive drop in December.
Futures volume was just $386.7 billion in December, according to data from The Block. Trading volume had its worst period since October 2020, when volumes were $333.6 billion. The monthly decrease was 39%.
Bitcoin Futures Dropping
Bitcoin futures on the CME also approached October 2020 levels. Shares on the stock market were limited to only $19.5 billion during the month. CME’s open interest in Bitcoin futures fell 11.1% to $1.36 billion at the end of December, according to The Block Research.
The average daily trading volume of futures on the CME was $632 million, down 53.1%.
Carlos Gonzales, a research analyst at 21.co, noted that the drop in volumes is not limited to the derivatives market, as spot volumes on central exchanges have also experienced a significant drop. Foreign exchange volumes fell nearly 47.5% from $673 billion in November to $353.5 billion in December, according to Gonzalez.
“The significant drop in both spot and derivatives volume in December indicates less risk appetite for speculation in the market. One possible explanation for this behavior is that FTX’s collapse in November led to a lack of confidence in centralized exchanges, increasing risk aversion.”
