NEAR Protocol gains 11% — One warning traders can't ignore

NEAR Protocol [NEAR] has rallied 11.5% over the past 24 hours at press time and is drawing speculative interest too. The gains inspired derivatives traders to go long on NEAR contracts, as evidenced by the 11.6% increase in Open Interest (OI) in a day. Source: Coinalyze

Yet, while OI climbed higher, the funding rate has fallen back toward neutral levels, according to Coinalyze data. The rising funding rate on May 31 and the early hours of June 1 reflected aggressive longs. In the 24 hours since, the funding rate has drifted close to zero, meaning the market has digested the spike in short covering that helped drive the initial rally. As things stand, the short-term dip in the funding rate suggests long positions do not need to pay a heavy premium to stay long — a sign of a healthy rally.

The higher timeframe NEAR warning sign Source: NEAR/USDT on TradingView In March 202