CME Exchange Sees Ether Futures Surge as Altcoins Rally Amid Market Rotation

Cryptocurrency markets experienced a widespread altcoin rally early Wednesday, with tokens such as OKB, PUMP, BNSOL, JITOSOL, and SOL recording double-digit gains. Ether spearheaded the movement, climbing toward record highs as capital shifted away from Bitcoin.

"Bitcoin's modest 0.4% daily increase leaves it 2% below monthly levels—clear confirmation of altcoin season," noted Alex Kuptsikevich, FxPro's chief market analyst. This trend indicates investors are selling BTC positions to allocate funds toward altcoins, bolstered by all-time highs in traditional indices like the S&P 500 and Nikkei 225.

CME's ether futures open interest jumped to 1.85 million ETH, marking a 23% rise in just over a week, as traders positioned for upside with three-month annualized basis exceeding 10%. Bitcoin's equivalent metric remains low at 7.5%. Despite ETH's rally, perpetual funding rates NEAR 10% across major tokens suggest no signs of market overheating.