$VELVET Don’t be fooled by the new high, it’s empty. The basis has shrunk by nearly 30%, the active long-short ratio has fallen below the balance line, and active sell orders have crushed buy orders so hard they can’t get back up. Funding rates have been positive in all eight samples, yet each round is colder than the last — the bulls are left hanging by a thread. Open interest is still piling up, but what’s piling up is not longs taking the other side; it’s shorts opening positions and charging straight into the blade. In four hours, nearly three points have been given back; price is clinging to a 20-period line and sweating, just one step away from the range top. This high zone is a meat grinder.