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KITE under pressure: 1.8B supply meets falling demand and rising shorts

By Olayiwola Dolapo · Published March 27, 2026 · 3 min read · Source: AMBCrypto
Trading
Written by Written by Olayiwola Dolapo Reviewed by Reviewed by Jacob Thomas Updated 04:30 IST March 28, 2026 Share Share
KITE sell-off deepens as holders exit and short pressure builds

Kite [KITE] remains in a bearish phase as market sentiment continues to weaken. The recent decline reflects underlying structural shifts that could push prices lower in the near term.

Perpetual traders are capitalizing on this trend, increasing short exposure in ways that may exert additional downward pressure in upcoming trading sessions.

KITE fundamentals weaken as holder count drops

A key driver behind KITE’s recent decline lies in deteriorating fundamentals. The number of holders has dropped sharply after peaking at 105,420 on the 24th of March, when market capitalization reached $413.9 million.

At press time, the holder count has fallen to 104,780, while market capitalization has declined by $57 million, according to CoinMarketCap.

KITE holder count
Source: CoinMarketCap

Despite the drop in participation, KITE’s circulating supply remains elevated at 1.8 billion tokens. This imbalance between supply and shrinking holder demand continues to weigh on sentiment.

At the same time, price action has weakened, with KITE posting a double-digit loss of 11% over the past 24 hours as of writing. Trading volume, however, has increased. Historically, rising volume alongside falling prices signals strong bearish momentum, suggesting the downtrend may extend.

Perpetual market signals growing short dominance

The perpetual futures market adds further downside risk.

Short traders have increased their dominance across KITE contracts. Over the past 24 hours, the Open Interest Weighted Funding Rate, which measures whether longs or shorts control the market, has turned sharply negative, at press time, reinforcing bearish sentiment.

The Funding Rate dropped to -1.2420%, the steepest drop since the 9th of March. On the 19th of March, a similar decline occurred, resulting in a sharp price drop from $0.29 to $0.18, indicating potential downside pressure.

KITE open interest weighted funding rate.
Source: CoinGlass

Notably, capital inflows into the perpetual market have risen even as short positioning intensifies. Open Interest has increased by nearly 1% to $50.54 million, suggesting that traders are adding liquidity primarily to build short exposure.

Liquidity points to further downside risk

Liquidity data indicates that KITE may still have room to decline.

Current liquidity clusters indicate a potential move toward $0.175, where a concentration of unfilled orders exists. With minimal liquidity below this level, price may gravitate toward this zone in the short term.

KITE liquidation heatmap
Source: CoinGlass

If KITE stabilizes and rebounds from this region, it could target a recovery toward the $0.23–$0.24 range. However, given the prevailing bearish momentum and increasing short pressure, the probability of further downside remains higher for now.


Final Summary

Olayiwola Dolapo

Journalist

Olayiwola Dolapo is a Crypto Research Analyst at AMBCrypto, driven by a mission to make the digital asset space more transparent and understandable for all. His journey was catalyzed by an early experience in the market that underscored the importance of deep, foundational knowledge—a principle that now guides his professional work.

This article was originally published on AMBCrypto and is republished here under RSS syndication for informational purposes. All rights and intellectual property remain with the original author. If you are the author and wish to have this article removed, please contact us at [email protected].

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