A proposal circulating in the XRP Ledger (XRPL) community is aiming at one of crypto’s most entrenched trading businesses: options. The idea is to build a purpose-built XRPL sidechain that feels “Hyperliquid-like,” a venue designed for exchange-grade execution, then connect that activity back to the XRPL base layer through bridging. In the proposal’s document, Hyperliquid […]
The post XRPL wants a Hyperliquid-like sidechain for the $40B options trading market, but one design choice could decide everything appeared first on CryptoSlate.
Heavy positioning at lower strikes signals rising demand for downside protection for bitcoin.
Bitcoin and ether options worth billions of dollars are set to expire this Friday.
A rare streak of four consecutive declines collides with January options expiry that could influence short term price action.
Bitcoin options open interest continues to outpace futures, marking a move away from leverage-driven speculation toward volatility and risk-management strategies.
Dominant call positioning is shaping bitcoin’s price dynamics as bitcoin breaks out of its sideways range.
Ethereum (ETH) is approaching a pivotal derivatives deadline as billions of dollars in options contracts near expiration, placing the $3,000 price level firmly in focus for traders. While traders are betting on a move higher, Ethereum’s near-term price action remains uncertain. The outcome of this options expiry could help shape ETH’s next big move, either to the upside or down to lower levels—particularly as investors reassess their expectations following November’s volatility and choppy conditions. The price of Ethereum is currently sitting above $2,900 as a massive options expiration worth roughly $6 billion approaches. This event is expected to play a major role in shaping short-term price action and could influence investor sentiment heading into 2026. Ethereum Options Set To Expire This Friday Data from the derivatives platform Laevitas show that $6 billion in ETH options will expire on Friday, 26 December, with call positions outnumbering puts by more than 2.2 times. Despite this imbalance, bears still hold the edge unless Ethereum’s price moves decisively above $3,100. Related Reading: Ethereum Exchange Supply Just Crashed To New Lows, Why This Is Bullish For Price Earlier this year, many traders had positioned for Ethereum to surge significantly by year-end. However, those bullish expectations were undermined by a massive November decline, leaving ETH’s current options expiry vulnerable to further downside pressure. While call options still dominate Open Interest (OI), many of these positions would expire worthless if the Ethereum price fails to recover and push higher. This creates a fragile setup and leaves the market in a delicate position, where overly optimistic bets could quickly unwind if key price levels do not hold. Notably, the $3,100 price level has emerged as a critical pivot ahead of the options expiration set for this Friday. Traders have called this level “max pain,” as it represents the price at which the most options contracts would expire worthless. A close below this zone could give bears control and potentially open the door to further price declines. On the other hand, a clean break above $3,100 could flip momentum rapidly. Presently, around $3.8 billion in ETH options are expected to expire on Deribit, the world’s largest Bitcoin and Ethereum options exchange. In addition, more than $23.6 billion in Bitcoin options are scheduled to expire on Friday, potentially adding significant volatility to the already fragile market. Analyst Expect Further Volatility For Ethereum With the massive $6 billion Ethereum options expiry on the horizon, traders appear to be bracing for significant market volatility, as the event could trigger a sharp, decisive move in ETH’s price. Separately, crypto analyst Ted Pillows anticipates further volatility for ETH if its price moves in either of two key directions. Related Reading: Major Ethereum Metric Just Hit A New All-Time High – Can Price Reclaim $3,000? He says that Ethereum is currently in a no-trading zone; however, volatility could occur if the price reclaims the $3,000 level or retests the $2,700-$2,800 zone. Featured image from Pixabay, chart from Tradingview.com
A year-end options expiry for bitcoin is suppressing volatility just as macro and risk-asset positioning turns supportive for a higher price.
Bitcoin’s options market is large, liquid, and (at the moment) unusually concentrated. Total open interest stands near $55.76 billion, with Deribit carrying $46.24 billion of that stack, far ahead of CME at $4.50 billion, OKX at $3.17 billion, Bybit at $1.29 billion, and Binance at $558.42 million, while spot trades in the $92,479.90 area. The […]
The post Bitcoin’s $55 billion options market is now obsessing over one specific date that forces a $100k showdown appeared first on CryptoSlate.
These flows represent a bullish bet on volatility rather than a downside hedge or outright bearish position.
A high-conviction Bitcoin whale placed a $2 billion wager that the worst is over and the market bottom might be in after a brutal leverage washout stripped speculative froth from the crypto market. On Nov. 24, Deribit, the Coinbase-owned crypto options trading platform, reported a 20,000 BTC notional block trade, which appears to signal that institutional […]
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A sharp drawdown has pushed BTC towards heavy put positioning at $80,000 ahead of Friday’s expiry.
The $80K BTC put is now the most popular options play on Deribit.
The price of bitcoin has dropped over 25% to $91,000 since Oct. 8.
Every few months, headlines warn of a looming multi-billion-dollar options expiry poised to shake Bitcoin price. This quarter’s figure, roughly $13 billion in notional contracts, sounds dramatic, yet it’s part of a well-worn pattern on Deribit, the exchange that clears nearly 90% of Bitcoin’s options open interest. The real story isn’t the size of the […]
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Traders eye potential volatility as bitcoin hovers near max pain around $114,000 and ether nears $4,000.
A bearish bet that bitcoin will fall to $100,000 or less is becoming just as popular as bullish bets on higher prices.
The deal gives institutions 24/7 trading access while keeping assets in segregated custody wallets
Bitcoin's breakout suggests further upside above $130,000, but a pullback to $118,000 remain possible, Deribit's CCO said.
Open interest in IBIT contracts hit nearly $38 billion after Friday’s expiry, versus $32 billion on Deribit, which had dominated the market since 2016.
As Bitcoin (BTC) continues to remain range-bound between $110,000 – $115,000, data from crypto exchanges seems divided toward the leading cryptocurrency. While Binance traders are exhibiting a bullish stance, traders from other exchanges are still showing a degree of hesitation. Binance Traders Expecting Bitcoin Price Surge According to a CryptoQuant Quicktake post by contributor Crazzyblockk, fresh derivatives data from Binance is signaling shifting market dynamics – specifically, the recent BTC funding rate on Binance points toward traders taking a bullish stance. Related Reading: Bitcoin Breaks Above Mid-Term Holder Breakeven – Is A Fresh Rally Brewing? On the contrary, the BTC funding rate from other exchanges, such as OKX, Bybit, and Deribit, suggests that traders on these platforms are still uncertain about taking any directional bet. As of September 23, the BTC perpetual funding rate on Binance climbed to +0.0084%, suggesting that the long positions are dominant and traders are willing to pay a premium to maintain their bullish bets. It is worth highlighting that the increase in funding rate is not an isolated event, as it suggests a positive seven-day change, indicating strengthening conviction among Binance traders. For comparison, the BTC funding rate on OKX is currently hovering at -0.0001%, while on Bybit it sits at 0.0015%. Finally, Deribit shows a funding rate of 0.0019%. The analyst added: This isn’t just a difference in numbers; it’s a difference in narrative. While funding rates on OKX and Bybit have actually decreased over the last seven days, Binance’s rate has climbed. For the uninitiated, funding rates can be viewed as a real-time gauge of trader sentiment in the perpetual swaps market. A strong positive rate like that of Binance, which diverges from the rest of the market, points toward aggressive bullish speculation. Is BTC About To Make A Move? In a separate CryptoQuant post, contributor XWIN Research Japan noted that Bitcoin’s implied volatility has dropped to its lowest level since 2023. Back then, the lull in the market was followed by an explosive rally of 325%, which propelled BTC from $29,000 to $124,000. Related Reading: Bitcoin Faces Bearish Pressure As Exchange Inflows Stay Elevated – Will BTC Lose $112,000 Support? The analyst added that the total Bitcoin exchange reserves continue to deplete at a rapid pace, hitting new multi-year lows. Historically, such a fall in BTC exchange reserves has preceded supply squeezes, leading to a dramatic rise in demand. That said, the overall sentiment toward BTC appears to be cold at present. The Bitcoin Fear & Greed Index suggests that investors are fearful of entering the market, which may offer a good opportunity to accumulate BTC at current market prices. However, fresh data from BTC wallets confirms that new wallets – those that are less than a month old – are starting to buy the top digital asset. At press time, BTC trades at $113,796, up 1% in the past 24 hours. Featured image from Unsplash, charts from CryptoQuant and TradingView.com
Bitcoin (BTC) puts trade at a premium across all time frames.
The impending expiry shows a strong demand for bitcoin put options, indicating a preference for downside protection,
One million contracts of the $4 XRP call option expiring on Dec. 26 changed hands via a block trade on Monday.
A long straddle represents a bullish bet on volatility.
Market sentiment has shifted against ether, with downside insurance premiums costlier than for bitcoin.
The reward rate for USDC on the exchange is 4% as of July 2025, but rates are subject to change by Coinbase.
Bitcoin has set a new all-time high above $121,000, and the options market on Deribit is showing clear signs of hedging pressure and gamma-driven pinning around this level. Traders are in a market structured heavily in favor of upside exposure, with positioning and Greek profiles aligning at a delicate inflection point. Current open interest and […]
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Bitcoin's price has been stable between $100,000 and $110,000, but upcoming events like the Fed minutes release may impact volatility.
Bitcoin steadied at $106,000 as Deribit hit a record $40 billion in BTC open interest and alts dipped after 939,000 ETH contracts expired on Friday