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BTC $96,420 +2.34% ETH $3,280 +1.82% SOL $185.40 -0.92% BNB $642.50 +0.45% XRP $2.18 +3.12% DOGE $0.082 -1.50% ADA $1.05 +0.80% AVAX $42.10 +1.15%
08/24/2024

Toncoin Open Interest Surges 32% Following Pavel Durov's Arrest

Toncoin's price dropped sharply after news broke that Pavel Durov, CEO of Telegram, had been arrested. Futures traders saw this as an opportunity, sending open interest (OI) up 32%. On August 24, Durov was arrested when his plane landed at Le Bourget Airport outside Paris. He reportedly faces charges including terrorism, trafficking, conspiracy, fraud, money laundering, and more. Just hours after the news broke, Toncoin TON tickers down

Toncoin Open Interest Surges 32% Following Pavel Durov's Arrest

Toncoin's price dropped sharply after news broke that Pavel Durov, CEO of Telegram, had been arrested. Futures traders saw this as an opportunity, sending open interest (OI) up 32%.

On August 24, Durov was arrested when his plane landed at Le Bourget Airport outside Paris. He reportedly faces charges including terrorism, trafficking, conspiracy, fraud, money laundering, and more.

Just hours after the news broke, open interest (OI) in Toncoin TON tickers down $5.75 surged 32% to $303.09 million, according to data from CoinGlass. The spike came immediately after TON's price sold off sharply on the Durov news.

At the time of publication, TON was trading at $5.71, down 14.71% from August 24, according to CoinMarketCap data.

Futures traders are skewing toward short positions. Source: CoinGlass

Open interest (OI) is the total number of outstanding derivative contracts, such as options or futures, that have not been settled.

The rise in OI signals growing conviction among traders about TON's price direction — whether up or down.

Anonymous crypto trader Daan Crypto Trades predicted in an X post on August 24 that the majority of traders were positioning for further downside.

"Most of this is almost certainly short/hedge positions," he added.

Traders typically take such positions when fear and uncertainty grip the market, especially when it involves a coin's founder, executives, or the broader company.

Traders Expect Durov to Be Released Soon

He also argued that based on the circumstances surrounding Durov's arrest, he believes "he'll be released fairly quickly."

However, he cautioned his 380,300 followers on X against taking similar short positions, warning that you should "always be careful catching a falling knife."

Related: BARR Breakout on Toncoin Opens the Door to a 40% Rally

"If he gets released, that announcement will make for a nice squeeze. Could see a few days of choppy price action until then," Daan Crypto Trades added.

Echoing that view, crypto trader Anup Dhungana said that "from a fundamental standpoint, if Durov is released after questioning and faces potential international pushback, a faster-than-expected price recovery could follow."