Record-breaking Bitcoin options expiry imminent… $24 billion

$24 billion (about 35 trillion won) worth of Bitcoin (BTC) options will expire on the 26th.

Cointelegraph said via its official X account on the 25th (local time), "This Friday (26th) a $24 billion Bitcoin options expiry is due." On the same day, $6 billion (about 8.7 trillion won) worth of Ethereum (ETH) options will also expire. Cointelegraph said, "Current positioning favors bearish strategies."

The Bitcoin and Ethereum options approaching expiry total $30 billion. A CoinCare (CryptoQuant) contributor said, "(On the 26th) seasonal year-end factors that reduce liquidity combined with the large options expiry have led to subdued active risk-taking." CoinDesk said, "More than half of Deribit's total open interest (OI) will expire (on the 26th)," and "(Currently) call options are nearly three times more numerous than put options."

Bitcoin's price is trading sideways in the $87,000 range ahead of the large options expiry. According to CoinMarketCap, Bitcoin's price slumped into the $87,000 range on the 23rd and has remained in a sideways pattern since. CW8900, a CryptoQuant contributor, said, "Currently, call option open interest has reached trough levels while put option open interest is rapidly increasing," adding, "Typically, an increase in put options indicates increased downward pressure, but it can also act as a signal hinting at a potential market reversal."