Dogecoin Futures Open Interest Explodes As Leveraged Traders Pile In

A crypto analyst has placed a seven-figure bet against Dogecoin, warning that the market looks dangerously overextended. CryptoQuant’s JA Maartun opened a short position of 1 million DOGE, citing a sharp and rapid buildup of leveraged contracts that he described as a risky setup.

The Numbers Behind The Warning

DOGE futures open interest climbed 33% in just five days, jumping from roughly 505 million to approximately 683 million DOGE contracts. The surge was steady, beginning around April 23 and peaking close to 685 million before settling slightly.

What made the move stand out wasn’t just the size — it was the fact that price barely moved during the same period. DOGE traded in a narrow band between $0.094 and $0.101 while the contract volume swelled.

That kind of divergence typically signals traders piling into positions on borrowed exposure rather than actual buying in the spot market.

Maartun’s short targets a price of around $0.09069, which would represent roughly a 10% drop from where DOGE was trading at the time of his post.

DOGE: Open Interest is up +33% in the last 5 days. 🤯 pic.twitter.com/zVvia03RGh

— Maartunn (@JA_Maartun) April 28, 2026

A Crowded Market With Nowhere To Hide

When open interest rises sharply without a matching move in price, it creates tension. Both sides of the trade — long and short — become vulnerable to a sudden unwind.

If buyers can’t push DOGE higher, overleveraged long positions may be forced to close, sending the price down fast. If sellers miscalculate, a short squeeze can push it sharply upward instead. Either way, the setup tends to produce volatility.