Live crypto order flow: OBI × CVD quadrant for perpetual futures
A live order-flow read on who is in control of BTC, ETH, SOL, BNB, XRP, DOGE and HYPE perpetual futures. We plot two microstructure signals against each other: order-book imbalance (OBI) on the x-axis, cumulative volume delta (CVD) on the y-axis. Together they describe order flow at the tape level. The chart trails the last 30 minutes, 4 hours or 24 hours. Quadrant tells you where pressure is. Trail tells you how it got there.
Streamed over WebSocket at one fused tick per second, aggregated across Binance, Bybit, OKX and Hyperliquid. No predictions. No signals. Just the plumbing visible. New to this? Start with how to read order flow.
BTC positioning balanced after 35.8 hours, CVD shows seller aggression
The micro zone is balanced, a state that has held for 35.8 hours. The zone was entered at 76985.36. The most recent transition into balanced came from a buyers zone. The book tilt is even overall, but venues disagree: Binance and Hyperliquid show more buy orders (bid-heavy), while Bybit and OKX show more sell orders (ask-heavy). The CVD (cumulative volume delta) over the last 30 minutes shows sellers as the aggressor, with a delta of -47.06 million USD and a taker buy ratio of 0.3591. The OBI (order-book imbalance) skew is 0.0494. Compared to one hour ago, the CVD delta improved from -78.32 million to -47.06 million USD, and the OBI skew shifted from -0.0244 to 0.0494.
CVD delta improved from -78.32M to -47.06M USD; OBI skew shifted from -0.0244 to 0.0494
How to read the quadrant
Pick a layer to isolate it on the chart. Same atoms, colours and rules as the live widget above.
Six ideas, in order
Each one builds on the last. Real colours, real rules — the same visual language as the live chart.
What the markers mean
One card per marker: the visual exactly as drawn on the chart, where it appears, what it tells you.
How to read zone context
The one block on the page that shows a historical distribution, not a live value: what price did in the next 60 minutes, each past time we entered this zone (7-day window).
| Zone | Median Δ | p25 | p75 | n |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buyers in control | -0.10% | -0.19% | -0.06% | 5 |
| Demand absorbing | -0.11% | -0.36% | +0.05% | 7 |
| Sellers dominating | +0.10% | -0.23% | +0.18% | 14 |
| Book supports | -0.01% | -0.11% | +0.02% | 7 |
| Balanced · now | -0.12% | -0.23% | +0.08% | 28 |
New to these concepts? Read the deep-dives: cumulative volume delta (CVD), What is order-book imbalance (OBI)?, or Long/short ratio vs OBI vs CVD.
Full methodology, including basis-point windows, exchange weights and known edge cases, is documented at /methodology/market-positioning.
FAQ
Why does the verdict say Balanced while the dot sits in a quadrant?
The dot is the raw (OBI, CVD) pair right now. The verdict is a confirmed state: OBI is EMA-smoothed, both axes must clear a noise deadband, and a new zone must hold for 300 seconds before it's confirmed. Until then the flip is shown as a pending candidate.
What is order-book imbalance (OBI)?
The difference between resting bid and ask liquidity within ±20 basis points of mid-price, scaled to −1…+1. Positive means passive buyers outnumber passive sellers. It measures intent, not execution — those orders haven't filled.
What is cumulative volume delta (CVD)?
The running sum of taker-buy minus taker-sell volume over the trail window, in USD. It tracks aggressive flow that crossed the spread. Where OBI shows what the book wants, CVD shows what it did. On the Y axis it's normalised by the asset's own 7-day p95, so positions are comparable across assets.
What is a CVD divergence?
Price makes a new high but CVD makes a lower high: buyers aren't pressing as hard as price suggests. The reverse on lows. Not a signal — a question: who is on the other side of this move?
How is this different from the long/short ratio?
The long/short ratio counts open positions on one exchange — sentiment, slow and rough. OBI × CVD measures liquidity and flow at the tape level, in seconds, across venues. They can disagree, and often do.
Which exchanges and symbols are covered?
Seven symbols (BTC, ETH, SOL, BNB, XRP, DOGE, HYPE) aggregated across four venues: Binance USDⓈ-M, Bybit USDT perps, OKX swaps and Hyperliquid. The aggregator publishes once per second over a single WebSocket.
Can I use this as a trading signal?
No. MarketTrace publishes microstructure data, not predictions or signals. Use it as one input alongside your own framework, risk model and timeframe. Informational data feed only. Not financial guidance.