Bittensor’s TAO token slipped below the $250 level on Thursday, extending a losing streak to four straight days as weaker retail participation and deteriorating sentiment weighed on the AI-focused cryptocurrency. The selloff is occurring alongside falling derivatives activity, with traders showing less willingness to maintain leverage heading into the next technical test near the $231 support area.
Data from CoinGlass indicates that TAO futures positioning has cooled materially over the past day, adding to pressure on near-term price momentum. Market participants are now watching whether TAO can hold key moving-average support or whether the breakdown risk increases toward lower levels referenced by technical analysts.
Key takeaways
- Price move: TAO slipped below $250 and is down roughly 6% over the past 24 hours, extending recent losses.
- Catalyst: Derivatives data show open interest declining, while liquidations and falling leverage demand point to risk-off positioning.
- Key implication: TAO’s ability to defend the $231 support zone may determine whether losses remain contained or deepen toward the next referenced support near the high-$190s.
- Market signal: Technical indicators suggest the prior bounce may have been corrective rather than the start of a sustained uptrend.
What drove the move
TAO’s weakness appears tied to a reduction in speculative demand. According to CoinGlass, TAO futures open interest fell more than 6% over the last 24 hours to approximately $252.08 million, signaling that the total value of active futures contracts declined. In practical terms, the data suggests traders are less inclined to add new exposure, with more positions being closed rather than built.
Risk-off behavior also surfaced through liquidation figures. Over the past 24 hours, total liquidations were roughly $1.67 million, with bullish positions accounting for about $1.48 million of the wiped-out amount. That mix indicates the selloff did not only reduce long exposure—some portion of long leverage appears to have been forcefully unwound as price weakened.
Additional participation metrics cited in the report point in the same direction: funding rates declined to 0.0018%, demand for leveraged long positions eased, and trading volume dropped by 14%. Together, these signals generally align with a market that is losing momentum and where marginal buyers are less active.
Market reaction and technical picture
On the technical front, TAO’s 4-hour chart has turned bearish, with the token down around 6% in the last 24 hours. The broader trend remains pressured after TAO failed to sustain a recovery attempt from last week.
TAO is trading below both major moving averages referenced in the article: the 50-day exponential moving average near $251 and the 200-day exponential moving average near $265. That placement typically matters to investors because it can limit rallies—until price reclaims those levels, bulls often struggle to attract consistent follow-through.
Despite the decline, TAO remains above the 20-day simple moving average near $231, which also functions as a key support area. The report notes that a decisive break below $231 could open the door to a deeper correction toward a further support level near $196. Investors are likely to focus on whether the $231 area holds on repeated tests, since failure would suggest buyers are no longer absorbing sell pressure effectively.
Momentum indicators cited in the report also point toward caution. The Relative Strength Index is hovering below the neutral 50 line, which is consistent with bearish momentum gaining influence. Meanwhile, the MACD histogram remains positive but is contracting, implying that upward momentum from any recent bounce is fading rather than strengthening.
What analysts are watching next
For TAO to regain upward momentum, the market will likely need to see buyers push price back above near-term resistance. The report highlights $278 as a first major resistance level, with the potential for an upside push toward the $281 zone if that level is reclaimed. A separate but equally important consideration is whether price can avoid further deterioration if $231 support breaks.
In the near term, the setup described by the article implies a two-sided decision point: defending the $231 support area may keep the decline from accelerating, while a breakdown could move attention to lower supports and potentially reinforce the view that last week’s advance was more of a temporary rebound than a durable trend reversal.
Traders and investors will also likely watch whether derivatives activity stabilizes. A continued decline in open interest and ongoing leverage unwinds would suggest sentiment remains fragile, while any reversal in funding rates and a pickup in participation could help reduce the downward pressure if price starts to firm.
Next to watch: Whether TAO can hold $231 and reclaim resistance around $278–$281, along with any fresh changes in futures open interest, liquidation flow, and funding rates that could signal a shift in risk appetite.
