When will the Santa rally come... Bitcoin, record-breaking 'options expiry' tension amid consolidation

During the Christmas holiday period, the virtual assets (cryptocurrencies) market showed a consolidation phase instead of the expected 'Santa rally'. Bitcoin edged down and hovered around $87,000, and at one point slipped to the $86,000 level intraday. Market attention is focused on a large options expiry scheduled for tonight.

On the 25th (local time), according to global crypto exchange Binance, Bitcoin (BTC) was trading at $87,160, down 0.8% from the previous day. At one point, Bitcoin's decline intensified, sliding intraday to $86,934. During the holiday period it appears to be maintaining a slightly weak trend without finding any special upward momentum.

Altcoins fell relatively more. Ethereum (ETH) recorded $2,897, down 1.68% from the previous day, surrendering the psychological support level of $2,900. Solana (SOL) was also pushed by selling pressure, breaking below the $120 level. As a result, the total market capitalization of virtual assets shrank to $2.94 trillion.

The key factor heightening market tension is today's 'record-breaking' options expiry. According to data from CoinGlass, about 300,000 Bitcoin options contracts are set to expire on the day. Their notional value alone amounts to about $23.7 billion.

When including Ethereum options, the total amount of derivatives expiring that day approaches $28.5 billion. This is twice as large as the same period last year. Contracts related to BlackRock's spot Bitcoin ETF 'IBIT' are also set to expire, about 446,000 of them.