Leveraged funds were net short 7,892 CME Bitcoin futures contracts on Tuesday, September 8, 2026, 272 more than a week earlier, according to the CFTC's weekly Commitments of Traders report. Each contract covers 5 bitcoin, so the position is about 39,460 BTC, or roughly $3.1 billion at early-September prices. In the same Bitcoin COT report, asset managers were net long 3,743 contracts, and open interest rose 1,386 to 21,083.
From the data
CFTC Commitments of Traders
Both Sides of the Book Grew
The net number hides a busy week. Leveraged funds added 616 long contracts, taking longs to 5,146, and 888 shorts, taking shorts to 13,038. That short count is the largest since May 26, when it stood at 13,300. Shorts grew faster than longs, so the net slid from -7,620 on September 1 to -7,892.
It's a small step: 3.6% on the net position. The bigger story is the fresh money. Open interest climbed 7% in a week, and the new contracts landed on both sides of the leveraged-fund book.
The Summer's Deepest Short Came August 25
The deepest net short of the summer came on August 25, at 8,089 contracts, the most since late May. September 8 ranks third since the start of June, behind that week and -7,949 on July 21.
Set against the last two years, this short is modest. Leveraged funds were net short 12,718 contracts on January 13, 2026, and 23,197 on December 17, 2024.
The Bitcoin COT Since July
| As of | Open interest | Leveraged long | Leveraged short | Leveraged net | Asset manager net |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-07-07 | 18,832 | 4,406 | 11,123 | -6,717 | +2,385 |
| 2026-07-14 | 19,385 | 4,015 | 11,506 | -7,491 | +2,815 |
| 2026-07-21 | 20,527 | 4,042 | 11,991 | -7,949 | +2,727 |
| 2026-07-28 | 20,019 | 3,295 | 10,168 | -6,873 | +2,299 |
| 2026-08-04 | 20,143 | 4,243 | 11,483 | -7,240 | +2,542 |
| 2026-08-11 | 21,185 | 4,997 | 12,049 | -7,052 | +2,234 |
| 2026-08-18 | 21,760 | 4,488 | 11,927 | -7,439 | +2,732 |
| 2026-08-25 | 22,216 | 3,181 | 11,270 | -8,089 | +2,945 |
| 2026-09-01 | 19,697 | 4,530 | 12,150 | -7,620 | +3,698 |
| 2026-09-08 | 21,083 | 5,146 | 13,038 | -7,892 | +3,743 |
CME Bitcoin futures, in contracts of 5 BTC. Net is long minus short. Source: CFTC Traders in Financial Futures.
Asset Managers Stay Long
Asset managers added 45 contracts to their net long, which reached 3,743, their largest since May 26 (4,352). They've been net long in every weekly report this year. Leveraged funds have been net short in every one. That split is the standing shape of this market, and September 8 didn't change it.
Ether Futures Moved Further
Leveraged funds in CME's cash-settled Ether futures went the same way, and harder. Their net short grew 1,961 contracts in the week to 7,286, from 5,325 on September 1. It had been 8,385 on August 25. Open interest in the Ether contract rose to 26,564 from 24,619. It's a separate market, and one position doesn't explain the other.
The Week After
The next report, for September 15, went the other way: leveraged funds cut their Bitcoin net short by 1,538 contracts, to 6,354.
Every weekly figure is on the Bitcoin COT page, next to the other futures markets on COT Positioning. The same series is in the free COT API.
Primary Sources & Disclosures
This article was written with AI tools. It's information, not investment, legal or tax advice. Editorial policy
Written by
XOOMAR
Data desk
XOOMAR publishes free market data from primary sources, with an open API. When something we publish is wrong, it's corrected in place.
