Bitcoin is trading near $78.9K, but what’s more interesting is what’s happening with leverage.
According to CryptoQuant data, Bitcoin funding rates across all exchanges have cooled significantly in 2026.
Key takeaways from the chart:
Funding is neutral to slightly positive right now. Green bars = longs paying shorts. Red bars = shorts paying longs.
Compared to 2021 and late 2024, we are NOT seeing extreme positive funding spikes. That means the market isn’t overheated with leverage.
Historically, big green spikes in funding often marked local tops. Big red spikes marked major bottoms and capitulation.
Why this matters:
Low and stable funding while BTC holds near $79K is actually healthy. It suggests the rally from the $58K July low has been driven more by spot buying than by reckless leverage.
In past cycles — 2017, 2021, 2024 — the biggest moves up came after funding reset to neutral. We’re seeing that same reset now in 2026.
With BTC still consolidating below $80K, a clean funding rate gives bulls room to add leverage again for the next push, potentially toward $100K.