SUI rose as much as 31% in 24 hours, briefly trading near $1.40 before settling around $1.29. The move followed a disclosure from Nasdaq-listed SUI Group Holdings, which said it had moved “substantially all” of its 108,728,129 SUI into direct staking. That position accounts for about 2.7% of circulating supply.
108.7 million SUI moved into staking
The main driver was a tightening in tradable supply. On May 7, SUI Group Holdings disclosed its holdings and shifted the tokens from DeFi into direct staking. A prior MEXC analysis described the change as a supply-shock setup and said the stake generates roughly 5,200 SUI per day at an annual rate near 1.8%. During the rally, SUI also pushed above a prior resistance area around $1.08.
The market reaction was amplified because much of SUI was already locked. Research cited by Coinpedia said nearly 74% of total SUI supply is staked, leaving a relatively thin float for active trading. With another 2.7% of circulating supply moving into longer-term staking, available spot liquidity tightened again.
Open interest jumps above $620 million
Derivatives activity accelerated alongside the spot move. Open interest in SUI futures climbed from about $450 million to more than $620 million, showing that traders were adding exposure as price advanced. The report also pointed to an earlier rally around May 10, when SUI had already gained roughly 40% to about $1.41. That move came with about $3.13 million in liquidations, and nearly 90% of them were shorts, reinforcing the short-squeeze narrative around the token.
Other background factors were also in play. The article linked the latest strength to CME Group’s recent launch of SUI futures and a $3 million SUI incentive program. With those elements lining up, SUI became the biggest gainer of the day among the top 10 cryptocurrencies by market capitalization and the top trending coin on CoinGecko.
Peter Brandt points to a “major bottom”
Technical commentary picked up as the price surged. Veteran trader Peter Brandt posted on X over the weekend that SUI’s weekly structure showed a “major bottom”, adding: “This is a major bottom. Price will trend substantially higher from current levels.” A follow-up report said it was his first bullish call on SUI and described the token as sitting at an important bottom from which it could see a sharp price increase.
Past trading episodes offer some context. The report noted that in 2024 SUI became a top performer when open interest reached a record $564 million, while another six-month high was tied to USDC integration and stronger on-chain activity. Supply constraints, though, do not remove other risks. The same article recalled that in April 2025, a report warned that a $265 million token unlock, equal to about 74 million tokens or 2.28% of circulating supply, could limit gains after a 61% weekly rally. For now, trading in SUI is centered on three facts: high staking participation, another large block moving into long-term staking, and a sharp expansion in futures open interest.