[Matrixport: Retail Buying Demand Remains Unclear, Extending the Current Consolidation Phase] Odaily Planet Daily reports that Matrixport has released a chart indicating that retail participation has remained consistently low over the past year. Using trading volume in the South Korean market as an indicator, retail buying demand remains unclear. The lack of retail demand means the market lacks incremental buying support, making it difficult for perpetual contract funding rates to rise and keeping them at low levels for an extended period. Low funding rates further compress the profit margins of basis trading (cash-and-carry arbitrage), thereby limiting incremental inflows into Bitcoin ETFs, which can only remain at relatively moderate levels overall. This also confirms our judgment made in March 2024: without a retail-driven market pushing the spot-futures spread, the allocation pace of institutional funds is unlikely to accelerate significantly, thereby extending the current consolidation phase.