CME Bitcoin futures activity has dropped to a 14-month low, possibly due to the failure of basis trading triggering institutional capital withdrawal

The Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) Bitcoin futures market continues to weaken. Data shows that the average daily open interest (OI) in March 2026 has fallen below $8 billion, further dropping to about $7.2 billion in early April, marking a new low since February 2024, and it has declined for the fifth consecutive month. Meanwhile, the monthly trading volume in March fell to $163 billion, nearly halving from the peak of January 2025.

Market analysis indicates that this round of decline is primarily due to large-scale liquidations of "basis trades." Previously, institutions profited from price differences by buying spot ETFs and shorting CME futures, which was the core driving force behind the growth of CME positions. However, as Bitcoin prices have retreated from a high of $120,000 to below $70,000, the annualized basis yield has significantly compressed. Currently, the basis yield of about 5% is close to the risk-free interest rate level of about 4.5%. When factoring in funding costs and counterparty risks, the arbitrage space has essentially disappeared, prompting leveraged funds to withdraw.