Bitcoin Dominance Holds Firm as Options Overtake Futures

Crypto markets entered 2026 with lower leverage and cleaner structure following last year's significant deleveraging event, according to a report from Coinbase and on-chain analytics firm Glassnode. The two firms published their quarterly Charting Crypto report on Jan. 27, drawing on proprietary on-chain data and an institutional survey to assess market conditions for the first quarter.

The report found that Bitcoin (BTC) retained structural leadership as its dominance held near 59%, even while mid- and small-cap assets failed to sustain gains from earlier rallies. Options open interest now exceeds perpetual futures following October's deleveraging, with positions shifting toward protective structures as participants hedge against further downside rather than exiting risk entirely.

The report also noted that BTC supply active within three months increased to 37% in Q4, while long-dormant supply declined modestly. Ethereum (ETH) appears to be approaching the later stages of its current performance cycle, which began from June 2022 lows, with traditional cycle frameworks losing predictive power due to structural changes to the ecosystem.