Monero Surpasses $400 as Derivatives Traders Build Bullish Positions

Monero ($XMR) extended its upward trajectory on Thursday, trading above $400 after buyers successfully defended a key support zone during the prior session. Strengthening derivatives metrics and a constructive technical setup point to building bullish momentum, with resistance at $416.45 emerging as the next significant test should buyers retain control.

The move carries particular weight for the leading privacy-focused cryptocurrency, which uses ring signatures and stealth addresses to obscure sender, recipient, and transaction amounts. Monero's price resilience comes against a backdrop of sustained regulatory pressure on privacy coins, with several major centralized exchanges — including Binance and OKX — having delisted or restricted $XMR trading in recent years due to compliance concerns. Despite reduced access on regulated venues, Monero retains an active trading ecosystem across decentralized exchanges and privacy-focused platforms, helping sustain market activity.

Derivatives Traders Increasingly Optimistic

CoinGlass data reveals growing confidence among Monero derivatives participants. On Thursday, $XMR's long-to-short ratio climbed to 1.3635 — its highest reading in over a month. A ratio above one signals that long positions outnumber shorts, reflecting expectations among a majority of traders that the cryptocurrency's price will continue rising.

While the elevated ratio underscores bullish sentiment, it also introduces heightened liquidation risk. A sudden reversal in $XMR's price could force highly leveraged traders to exit rapidly, potentially amplifying downside volatility.

Monero's Open Interest has risen steadily since the start of August, with the total value of outstanding derivatives positions across tracked exchanges reaching $182.59 million on Thursday. Rising Open Interest combined with an advancing price typically signals that new positions are entering the market and reinforcing the prevailing trend. In the current environment, the simultaneous increase in both metrics suggests traders are establishing fresh long positions rather than the rally being fueled primarily by short covering.

Sustained growth in Open Interest could provide fuel for another move higher. Conversely, an abrupt decline would indicate position closures and weakening momentum.

Monero's funding rate turned positive on August 7 and rose to 0.010% by Thursday. Positive funding means that perpetual futures traders holding long positions are paying those holding shorts — a dynamic that generally reflects stronger demand for bullish exposure. Taken together, the rising long-to-short ratio, climbing Open Interest, and positive funding rates paint a constructive derivatives picture for $XMR. However, persistently elevated funding could also indicate that leveraged long positioning is becoming overcrowded, leaving Monero susceptible to a long squeeze in the event of a sharp pullback.

Technical Structure Supports Upside

On the $XMR/USD daily chart, Monero traded near $405 at the time of writing, holding above its major Exponential Moving Averages (EMAs). The 50-day EMA sits at $356.17, while the 100-day and 200-day EMAs are positioned at $353.92 and $356.97, respectively. These three averages form a dense support zone between approximately $354 and $357.

$XMR also remains above a rising trendline near $354.18 and intermediate horizontal support at $375.20. Maintaining these levels keeps the short-term technical bias tilted to the upside.

The Relative Strength Index (RSI) held in the mid-60s, indicating strong buying momentum without yet reaching decisively overbought territory. The Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) indicator remained positive, with the MACD line above zero and recent histogram expansion suggesting upward momentum is building.

Still, the RSI's proximity to overbought levels warrants monitoring for signs of exhaustion as $XMR approaches key resistance.

The next major resistance sits at $416.45. A decisive daily close above this level could confirm continuation of the uptrend and open the door for a further rally, provided $XMR holds above its moving averages and rising trendline.

On the downside, $375.20 serves as the first key support. A pullback toward this level could attract buyers looking to participate in the prevailing uptrend. Should sellers push the price below $375.20, attention would shift to the EMA support cluster between $353.92 and $356.97, reinforced by the rising trendline near $354.18. A daily close below this cluster would signal weakening bullish control and could expose deeper horizontal support at $285.11.

For now, Monero's price structure and derivatives indicators favor buyers, with $416.45 standing as the next major hurdle. The ability to sustain momentum above $400 — even as regulatory headwinds limit listings on major exchanges — highlights the role of decentralized trading infrastructure in supporting continued price discovery for privacy assets.