Bitcoin 15% futures basis 'insane' as BTC price sees record daily close

Bitcoin (BTC) saw its highest daily close in history on Dec. 11 as six-figure BTC price action came back with a bang.

BTC/USD 1-day chart. Source: Cointelegraph/TradingView

BTC price forecast sees new all-time high in “coming days”

Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView confirmed BTC/USD sealing its latest daily candle at around $101,200.

On Bitstamp, this matched the close from Dec. 8 to become the highest ever recorded, with bulls pulling away from local lows of $94,000 seen earlier in the week.

“The crucial level is still defined on $BTC,” trader, analyst and entrepreneur Michaël van de Poppe, summarized in his latest analysis on X. 

“If the markets stay above that area, it's likely that we'll see new ATH's in the coming days.”

BTC/USDT 4-hour chart with RSI data. Source: Michaël van de Poppe/X

Commenting, market observers noted continued market stability accompanying the latest trip to $100,000 and beyond.

“Bitcoin quietly just had its highest daily close ever,” Charles Edwards, founder of quantitative Bitcoin and digital asset fund Capriole Investments, wrote in an X post on Dec. 12. 

“Meanwhile funding rates are below normal, leverage still wiped and ETFs are seeing day after day of relentless inflows.”

Edwards referred to the cleansing of leveraged positions that resulted from snap market volatility this week and last.

Shorts felt the heat on the rebound, with combined 24-hour crypto liquidations at $270 million at the time of writing, per data from monitoring resource CoinGlass.

Crypto liquidations (screenshot). Source: CoinGlass

Bitcoin futures speculation noticeably absent

Zaheer Ebtikar, co-founder of crypto fund Split Capital, flagged additional data supporting the lack of excessive market risk.

Related: Bitcoin ‘Choppiness’ index hints $110K BTC price will be tough to crack

Despite Bitcoin circling all-time highs, he noted, its futures basis remained unusually low.

“I can’t explain to you how absolutely insane this image is,” he told X followers alongside an illustrative chart.

The futures basis refers to the difference in price between spot and futures market pricing, measured as a percentage of spot. In Bitcoin bull markets where all-time highs occur, the basis can reach 30% or more, reflecting increased speculation over BTC price growth to come. 

Bitcoin futures basis comparison. Source: Zaheer Ebtikar/X

This article does not contain investment advice or recommendations. Every investment and trading move involves risk, and readers should conduct their own research when making a decision.