Traders betting against SKR were hit with unusually high fees, paying up to negative 0.084% an hour to maintain their trades before rates settled lower.
Imagine SKR is trading near $0.0217. Suddenly, a wave of traders rushes in to bet that the price is about to drop, piling on heavy selling pressure all at once.
Across a ten-minute window, seven alerts fired as the cost to hold these downward bets spiked to over -0.084% an hour. Over the following minutes, that fee gradually eased back to -0.050%.
Crypto markets balance buyers and sellers using an ongoing fee called the funding rate. When too many traders short the asset, the rate turns deeply negative, forcing sellers to pay cash directly to buyers.
A single alert could be a brief glitch, but repeated alerts over ten minutes show sustained crowding. Downside speculators were willing to pay a recurring penalty just to keep their positions open.
Negative funding does not guarantee price will fall or rise. If price rises even slightly, paying high hourly fees can force short sellers to close quickly, creating unpredictable market swings in either direction.
Don't think negative funding means an asset is definitely doomed to drop. Think of it as a crowded trade where sellers are paying a heavy toll to stay in the game.