Wall Street hedge funds cut net bearish Bitcoin futures bets 15% as price fell toward $80,000

Leveraged funds reduced their net short Bitcoin futures positions by nearly 15% in the week to Oct. 13, even as Bitcoin tumbled toward $80,000. CFTC data showed the net short equivalent fell to 30,611 BTC from 35,903 BTC a week earlier, driven by a 6,437 BTC decline in outright short positions to 59,458 BTC and a smaller 1,145 BTC reduction in long positions to 28,847 BTC. The faster decline in shorts narrowed the bearish imbalance, though leveraged funds still maintained more than twice as much short exposure as long exposure. Bitcoin's price fell nearly 3% during the period, dropping from about $85,600 on Oct. 6 to $83,100 on Oct. 13, and briefly slipping below $81,000 as rising Treasury yields and weakening institutional demand weighed on risk appetite.