Riset terverifikasi sumber: Binance / OKX

What Starknet actually said

On 8 October at 08:32 UTC, Starknet's official account posted: "We are actively considering becoming an L1. This would enable Starknet to become the first fully quantum-resistant network, with 2027 as our target." Thirteen minutes earlier, StarkWare co-founder Eli Ben-Sasson opened a thread asking whether becoming an L1 "for post-quantum agility" was a good or bad idea, pointing to two concerns: the quantum threat, which he said "may be MUCH closer than we think", and the pace of AI.

Decrypt's report adds the reasoning Ben-Sasson gave in the thread. As a layer 2, Starknet relies on Ethereum's security and can only be as quantum-safe as Ethereum. Ethereum's own roadmap targets core post-quantum infrastructure around 2029. Becoming a layer 1 would let Starknet run its own security upgrades without waiting, at the cost of securing itself instead of borrowing Ethereum's protection. Decrypt also notes that the statement does not say how existing apps and users would move.

Starknet's blog currently leads with a post on its upgrade to quantum resistance, describing a path using STARK proofs and smart accounts "without a network-wide fork". The L1 idea is presented as an option under consideration, not a decision.

What the market did

Daily closes for STRKUSDT on Binance spot (UTC):

From the 7 October close to $0.109 is a rise of about 122% (our arithmetic). Over the 24 hours to 09:12 UTC on 11 October, Binance spot showed +54.3% on $120 million of volume, while Binance USDT-margined futures traded $1.27 billion, about ten times the spot figure. NexuAlpha's market feed listed STRK as the day's top mover at +53.6% on $1.26 billion.

When derivatives volume is ten times spot, the price is being set largely by leveraged traders. That matters for the next part.

Our data: the crowd turned short into the rally

Binance publishes daily snapshots of futures positioning. Taken at 00:00 UTC each day:

Open interest rose about threefold between 9 and 11 October, and by 09:12 UTC it stood at 450 million STRK, about $49 million at the mark price. Over the same days the share of accounts that were long fell by 18 percentage points. New positions were increasingly short.

Funding confirms it. STRK perpetuals on Binance settle every four hours. The rate sat at about +0.004% to +0.005% through the first leg of the rally, then flipped: −0.0027% at 00:00 UTC on 11 October, −0.0018% at 04:00 and −0.0017% at 08:00. On OKX, the last settled STRK rate was −0.0089% and the current one −0.0077% at about 09:13 UTC. Negative funding means shorts are paying longs to keep their positions open.

Two cautions. The account ratio counts accounts, not dollars, so a few large longs can outweigh many small shorts. And a crowded short is not a forecast: it says where the pressure would come from if the price kept rising, not that it will.

What could change the picture

• Details on the L1 plan. A timeline, a migration path for apps and bridged assets, or a decision not to proceed would all reprice the story.
• Ethereum's response. Ben-Sasson framed the move as a reaction to Ethereum's post-quantum pace; any acceleration there weakens the case for leaving.
• Funding and open interest. If funding stays negative while open interest keeps rising, shorts keep paying; a fall in open interest would show positions being closed.
• Liquidity. With futures volume ten times spot, moves in both directions can be fast. Check our liquidation tracker for the larger contracts it follows.

How to act on this

If you trade STRK perpetuals, remember that funding on this contract settles every four hours on Binance, not every eight, so a position held for a day pays or receives six times. Keep leverage low in a market where derivatives dominate, and check the funding board before holding overnight. To cut the fee side, OKX lists a STRK-USDT perpetual; a regular account pays 0.02% maker and 0.05% taker on USDT perpetuals, and registering with code nexu888 returns 40% of trading fees, settled hourly. See the OKX profile and compare on /rates. For the mechanics behind the numbers above, read our funding rate explainer.

Quick answers

Why is STRK going up? The rally followed Starknet's 8 October post saying it is actively considering becoming a layer 1 to be fully quantum-resistant by 2027.

Is Starknet leaving Ethereum? Not yet. It said it is "actively considering" becoming an L1; no decision or migration plan has been published.

How much has STRK risen? About 54% in the 24 hours to 09:12 UTC on 11 October and about 122% from the 7 October close, on Binance spot.

Are traders long or short STRK? On Binance, 57.3% of accounts were short at 00:00 UTC on 11 October, up from 38.9% two days earlier, and funding was negative on Binance and OKX.

What is STRK's open interest? About 450 million STRK on Binance futures, roughly $49 million, at 09:12 UTC on 11 October.

Limits

Statements come from Starknet's and Eli Ben-Sasson's posts of 8 October and Decrypt's report of 9 October. Prices, volume, open interest, account ratios and funding are from Binance and OKX public market data and NexuAlpha's market feed around 09:12–09:13 UTC on 11 October 2026; they change quickly. Percentage changes from closes are our arithmetic. This is market data, not a forecast or investment advice. Partner links may earn NexuAlpha a commission paid by the exchange, at no extra cost to you.