Bitcoin Options Expiry Today: Market Faces Potential Volatility as Traders Eye $96,000 Max Pain Level

• Today, $5.79 billion in Bitcoin and Ethereum options expire, influencing short-term market trends with a focus on put-to-call ratios.

• Bitcoin options have a notional value of $4.68 billion with a maximum pain point at $96,000, while Ethereum options total $1.11 billion with a pain point at $3,000.

• Traders are bracing for volatility as the market faces concerns over potential downside, with the possibility of prices gravitating toward max pain levels.

With $5.79 billion in Bitcoin and Ethereum options set to expire today, market volatility may increase as prices align with key pain points.

Insights on Today’s Expiring Bitcoin and Ethereum Options

The notional value of today’s expiring BTC options is $4.68 billion. According to Deribit’s data, these 58,633 expiring Bitcoin options have a put-to-call ratio of 0.71. This ratio suggests a prevalence of purchase options (calls) over sales options (puts).

The data also reveals that the maximum pain point for these expiring options is $96,000. The maximum pain point is the price at which the asset will cause the greatest number of holders’ financial losses.

Expiring Bitcoin Options. Source: Deribit

In addition to Bitcoin options, 527,277 Ethereum options contracts are set to expire today. These expiring options have a notional value of $1.109 billion, a put-to-call ratio of 0.52, and a maximum pain point of $3,000.

The number of today’s expiring options is significantly higher than last week. COINOTAG reported that last week’s options expiry amounted to $2.04 billion, comprising 16,561 BTC and 153,608 ETH contracts.

This notable difference comes as this week’s expiring options are for the month. Notably, many institutional traders and funds trade options monthly rather than weekly. Additionally, large funds and market makers often roll over or close their positions at the end of the month to adjust portfolios.

Expiring Ethereum Options. Source: Deribit

Market makers and traders also focus on monthly expiries because they provide better liquidity and tighter spreads as they accumulate more open interest over time than weekly expiries.

Ahead of the expiration, options trading tool provider Greeks.live shared its insights into the options market. It observed that the overall market sentiment is predominantly bearish, with significant concern about further downside potential.

“Overall Market Sentiment: The group is predominantly bearish with traders watching $82,000 as a critical support level that must hold to maintain the HTF (high timeframe) trend. There is significant concern about the continued downside, with many members discussing the rapid 17% decline over three days and debating whether recent selling is controlled or indicative of a broader market shift,” read the post.

Implication of Today’s Options Expiry on BTC and ETH Prices

Against this backdrop, some traders are reportedly repositioning to call ratio spreads as a more defensive strategy. This move is based on the belief that after this drawdown, Bitcoin price action may become choppy, with the potential for a retest of $88,000 before determining further direction.

Deribit states that traders are bracing for more volatility, hedging against declining crypto prices to levels last seen just after election day. The dampened outlook comes following US President Donald Trump’s tariffs against Mexico, Canada, China, and Europe.

As COINOTAG reported, Trump’s surprise announcement of EU tariffs devastated Bitcoin and the broader crypto market. It remains to be seen how Trump’s tariffs could affect crypto and Bitcoin’s potential in the longer term.

For now, however, the max pain prices for both Bitcoin and Ethereum are well above their respective market values. As of this writing, Bitcoin traded for $79,890, whereas ETH exchanged hands for $2,137.

As the max pain price is well above the spot price, this could incentivize options sellers to push Bitcoin and Ethereum prices higher closer to the pain level.

“With the end of the month approaching, BTC options traders should take note: Max Pain for Feb 28 sits at $98,000, with a massive $5 billion notional value. This means the highest open interest is clustered here, incentivizing market makers to keep BTC close to this price. Expect increased volatility and potential price gravitation toward this level,” altcoin options exchange PowerTrade stated.

Conclusion

As traders navigate the complexities of these expiring options, understanding the implications of the current market dynamics is crucial. The upcoming volatility may dictate short-term strategies, and it will be essential to monitor key support and resistance levels for both Bitcoin and Ethereum. Further movements in these prices will likely hinge on traders’ reactions to today’s options expiry and global economic events.