Bitcoin derivatives markets are showing signs of reduced leverage alongside increasingly crowded long positioning, according to CryptoQuant analyst Axel Adler Jr. Open interest fell about 3.8%, with the new analysis citing 318,000 BTC versus 331,000 BTC and reporting 2,850 BTC in liquidations over 24 hours. The source presents the dates for those open-interest figures in reverse order, while the existing record lists 318,600 BTC on Aug. 31 and 331,100 BTC on Aug. 21. Funding stood at 0.00906%, while the eight-hour and 24-hour averages were 0.00821% and 0.00725%, respectively. With the shorter-term average about 13% above the 24-hour average, Adler warned that a break below key support could trigger forced selling by leveraged long traders and deepen a market decline.