YEREVAN (CoinChapter.com) — A total of 19,300 Bitcoin options contracts with a notional value of $1.8 billion are set to expire today, Jan. 10. This major event has drawn attention as crypto markets experience continued declines this week.
Bitcoin Options Expiry: Key Data Points
Today’s Bitcoin options expiry features a put/call ratio of 0.65, indicating that more traders are holding call options compared to puts. Open interest remains high at the $120,000 strike price, with a total value of $1.48 billion, according to Deribit.
Significant open interest is also noted at $100,000 and $110,000 strike prices, amounting to over $1 billion combined. Despite this, implied volatility levels are low. Greeks Live, a crypto derivatives provider, noted,
“Short-term IVs rebounded slightly but remained at low levels, with the market pricing in future volatility unchanged.”
Deribit reported that leveraged positions are not as prominent as during Bitcoin’s earlier six-figure runs. It stated that futures trading currently benefits traders taking short positions through puts. However, call options still dominate trader sentiment overall.
Ethereum Options Expiry Adds Pressure
In addition to the $1.8 billion Bitcoin options, today’s expiry includes 140,000 Ethereum options contracts. These Ethereum options have a notional value of $455 million and a put/call ratio of 0.47, reflecting slightly more balanced sentiment compared to Bitcoin.
Combined, the Bitcoin options expiry and Ethereum contracts bring today’s total notional value to $2.2 billion, highlighting the scale of this week’s events. Ethereum has also seen price declines alongside Bitcoin.
Crypto Market Correction Continues
The ongoing crypto market correction has pushed total market capitalization down by 4.4% over the past day, dropping to $3.37 trillion. Bitcoin slipped to an intraday low of $91,250 before recovering slightly to $93,000 during early Asian trading hours.
Since reaching its peak of $100,000 on Jan. 7, Bitcoin has lost 9% and is now approaching the lower bounds of its price channel, which has held since mid-November. The market remains under pressure as traders respond to U.S. inflation concerns and speculation about potential Bitcoin selloffs by the U.S. government.
