# Bitcoin’s $87,000 Rally Leaves Long Traders Exposed to Downside Risk

By Enna Lee

Canonical URL: https://www.tokenpost.com/news/investing/25721
Published: 2026-09-30T10:05:01.000Z
Updated: 2026-09-30T10:05:01.000Z
Section: Investing

> Weakening spot and futures demand, along with falling ETF inflows, has shifted leveraged exposure toward long positions as Bitcoin tests higher market levels.

Bitcoin (BTC) reached approximately $87,400, an eight-month high, after moving above its 365-day moving average, but weakening demand has left the market more exposed to long-position liquidations.

The move cleared the largest short-liquidation clusters built up over the previous 365 days. As bearish positions were closed during the advance, the remaining leveraged exposure shifted toward long positions.

That structure raises downside liquidation risk if BTC retreats toward the 365-day moving average near $80,000. A sustained break below that level could expose levels near the 200-day moving average at $71,000 and traders’ realized price near $67,000.

Bitcoin’s Bull Score Index reached 90 out of 100 after BTC reclaimed the 365-day moving average. Several demand measures weakened at the same time.

Spot demand declined by about 170,000 BTC during the 30 days through Sept. 29. Futures-demand growth fell from approximately 164,000 BTC on Sept. 14 to 16,000 BTC on Sept. 29, a decline of about 90%.

Short-term holders’ unrealized profit margin reached 33%, the highest level since December 2024. Holders realized profits on 25,700 BTC on Sept. 22, one of the largest single-day totals in 2026.

U.S. spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds recorded $31.07 million in net inflows on Sept. 28, extending their positive-flow streak to eight trading sessions. The figure was down from $134.47 million on Sept. 25.

Derivatives activity remained dominant. Binance’s spot-to-futures volume ratio was about 0.12, while Bitcoin open interest on the exchange fell to approximately $9.2 billion from $10.6 billion over roughly one week. Open interest measured in BTC terms fell nearly 20% to its lowest level since March.

Market sentiment reached its greediest reading since July 2025. The combination of weaker fresh demand, profit-taking and long-heavy exposure increases the market’s sensitivity to a pullback, but the available data do not establish that Bitcoin has reached a cycle top or that a correction is certain.