Binance Dominated Open Interest Growth During March Bitcoin and Ethereum Rally: CryptoQuant

Open Interest Hit Highest Level Since Late January

Aggregate open interest on Bitcoin and Ethereum perpetual futures surged to approximately $30 billion on March 16, reaching the highest point since January 31, according to analytics firm CryptoQuant. Binance recorded the largest single-day increase in OI among all centralized exchanges during the rally.

«Open interest surged to ~$30B as prices rallied. Binance led inflows, with BTC +$829M and ETH +$1.6B, while activity concentrated on top exchanges. Leverage is flowing into major venues, not broad market participation.» — CryptoQuant.com (@cryptoquant_com), original post

Why This Matters

The concentration of capital inflows on the largest venues signals that traders prefer to build leveraged positions where liquidity is deepest. This pattern, typical of sharp price moves, means top-tier platforms absorb a disproportionate share of new capital, while smaller exchanges see limited growth. The absence of broad-based participation suggests the leverage buildup is concentrated rather than widespread across the market.

Binance Outpaced Rivals on Bitcoin OI

Binance's daily Bitcoin open interest increase reached $829 million. Its two closest competitors — Bybit at $377 million and Gate at $255 million — combined for just $632 million, falling well short of the market leader.

The third-week-of-March rally prompted traders to aggressively open long positions, driving up perpetual futures activity to its highest level since late January.

Ethereum Gap Was Even Wider

Binance's dominance was even more pronounced on the Ethereum side. The exchange added $1.6 billion in ETH open interest in a single day, compared to $855 million on Bybit and $629 million on Gate. During this period, ETH broke above $2,300, further fueling derivatives activity.

Capital Gravitates Toward Liquid Venues

CryptoQuant's report notes that heatmap data confirms the bulk of open interest growth is concentrated on Binance, followed by Gate and Bybit. Large, liquid venues attract a disproportionate share of capital during periods of strong price action.

The analysts conclude that as prices rise, traders and investors funnel activity through top exchanges. Binance and other leading platforms serve as primary hubs for capital deployment and leverage accumulation in the perpetual futures market. The limited participation from smaller venues underscores that the current leverage expansion is a targeted phenomenon rather than a sign of broad market engagement.