![Bullish sentiment for [btc] is at a 5-month high](https://ohiobitcoin.com/storage/2019/01/NmeVJy.png "Bullish sentiment for [btc] is at a 5-month high")
The ratio of long-to-short positions placed on bitcoin [BTC] (BTC) has reached its highest level in over five months on cryptocurrency exchange Bitfinex.
At press time, the BTC long positions placed on the exchange total 33,750 units, worth $137.3 million at current market prices, whereas the number of short positions is roughly 11,000 units less at just 22,787 – now worth just under $93 million.
This creates the long-to-short ratio of nearly 1.5:1 – its highest since August 6th of last year.
bitcoin longs and shorts (Bitfinex)
![Bullish sentiment for [btc] is at a 5-month high](http://ohiobitcoin.com/storage/2019/01/NmeVJy.png "Bullish sentiment for [btc] is at a 5-month high")
The drop in short positions is not exactly surprising, considering the price of bitcoin [BTC] fell roughly 50 percent between Nov. 14 and Dec. 14, giving traders ample time to lock in profits while awaiting further opportunities.
A bullish technical reversal pattern known as the “” pattern is also evident on the bitcoin [BTC]’s price chart, which may be playing another factor in scaring bears out of the market for now.
Although the long/short ratio being at multi-month highs may seem encouraging for bitcoin [BTC] bulls, the market will likely witness another sharp decline if key support near $3,200 is breached, as it would signal the latest corrective bounce to nearly $4,400 has ended.
This would put the market at risk of experiencing a “long squeeze” or rapid closure of long positions, which could have a rapid and bearish effect on the price of bitcoin [BTC] since the only way to terminate a long position is to sell back the longed BTC.
Disclosure: The author holds BTC, AST, REQ, OMG, FUEL, 1st and AMP at the time of writing.
Bull image via ; Charts via TradingView
Published at Wed, 09 Jan 2019 17:31:18 +0000
