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CryptoQuant founder Ki Young Ju corrected an earlier reading of CME Bitcoin futures data after mislabeling one trader category in his analysis. Leveraged funds still hold a net short position, while Riot Platforms has signed a 20-year data center agreement expected to generate $9.1 billion.
According to Odaily, Ki said he had mistakenly labeled ‘Total Reportables’ as ‘Leveraged Funds.’ The error created the impression that hedge funds had rarely turned net long on Bitcoin futures. He cited CFTC positioning data through August 4. Large institutional traders, including asset managers, market makers, and dealers, held a slightly net long position.
As a result, Ki said his earlier view that institutions were leaning long still stood. Leveraged funds, by contrast, remained net short on BTC futures.
Even so, leveraged funds have reduced their standard Bitcoin futures net short position by about 50% over the past year in BTC terms.
Ki linked the decline mainly to weaker basis-trading returns. As futures basis returns fell below US Treasury yields, arbitrage opportunities became less attractive. Leveraged funds also held a net long position in Micro Bitcoin futures. However, this position totaled about 394 BTC, nearly 1% of their standard futures net short. Could lower basis returns keep shrinking that structural short?
Ki said leveraged funds have not turned net long overall. Instead, their long-term structural short has weakened as arbitrage trades unwind and directional positioning changes.
Riot Platforms signed a 20-year agreement for 191 megawatts of computing capacity at its Rockdale campus in Texas. Riot described the customer as a leading frontier AI lab. Bloomberg identified the tenant as Anthropic, citing people familiar with the transaction. Riot declined to comment, while Anthropic did not respond, leaving the customer’s identity unconfirmed.
Riot plans to deliver 96 MW in December 2027 and another 95 MW by June 2028. The initial contract runs through June 2048. Riot expects the agreement to generate about $9.1 billion during the base term. Two optional five-year extensions could lift potential contract revenue to about $16.1 billion.
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The company projects cumulative net operating income between $7.3 billion and $8.2 billion over the initial term. Those forecasts depend on construction progress and operating performance. Rockdale has 700 MW of developed and energized power capacity. Riot says its existing fiber and electrical infrastructure can support high-density computing as the site shifts toward data center tenants.
AMD already holds 50 MW under signed agreements at Rockdale. Including the new 191 MW contract, Riot now has 241 MW of critical IT capacity under signed leases. Riot’s earnings deck places expected contracted revenue from both tenants at about $9.8 billion. Q2 data center revenue reached $23.2 million as the AMD deployment moved online.
Ki Young Ju’s correction leaves leveraged funds net short on Bitcoin futures, although their structural short has weakened. Meanwhile, Riot’s $9.1 billion Rockdale agreement expands its data center strategy and raises signed critical IT capacity to 241 MW.
