Ethereum derivatives positioning is showing a broad reset across two major exchanges, with open interest falling toward historically important levels even as ETH remains near the $1,600 area.

On June 30, ETH open interest on Binance dropped to $1.95 billion, its lowest level since February, when the exchange recorded roughly $1.91 billion.

At the same time, Gate.io open interest fell to a new chart low of $1.84 billion.

The Gate.io reading is particularly notable because it sits below the previous low of $2.67 billion recorded on April 11, 2025, when ETH traded near $1,570.

That means Gate.io’s current ETH open interest is around $830 million lower, or roughly 31% below, the leverage level seen during that earlier market-bottom period.

The simultaneous decline across Binance and Gate.io suggests the move is not isolated to one exchange.

Combined ETH open interest on the two platforms has fallen to about $3.79 billion, highlighting a broader reduction in leveraged exposure among derivatives traders.

The comparison with April 2025 does not guarantee that ETH will repeat the same price path. However, it shows that speculative positioning is now even lighter than it was when ETH previously traded near a major low before later moving toward new highs.

In other words, ETH is revisiting a similar price zone with substantially less leverage sitting on Gate.io and Binance.

That can reflect continued caution and weak risk appetite in the short term, but it also leaves the market less crowded with leveraged positions if fresh spot demand begins to return.

Written by Amr Taha