TLDR
- $2.27B in crypto options expiring today ($1.81B BTC, $459M ETH)
- Total crypto market cap dropped $57B to $3.19T
- Bitcoin trading at $93,675, down from $100K level
- Put-to-call ratios (BTC 0.65, ETH 0.48) suggest overall bullish sentiment
- 9,364 BTC and 141,185 ETH options contracts expiring
The cryptocurrency market is experiencing volatility as $2.27 billion in Bitcoin and Ethereum options prepare to expire on January 10, 2025. This comes as the total crypto market capitalization decreased by $57 billion to $3.19 trillion.
Bitcoin options worth $1.81 billion are set to expire, representing 19,364 contracts on the Deribit exchange. This figure shows a slight decrease from last week’s expiration of 19,885 contracts, indicating a modest reduction in trading activity.
The current put-to-call ratio for Bitcoin stands at 0.65, suggesting that traders maintain an optimistic outlook despite recent price corrections. Bitcoin’s price has moved away from the $100,000 mark and currently trades at $93,675, with $93,625 serving as a crucial support level.
Ethereum’s options market faces a $459 million expiration, involving 141,185 contracts. This marks a substantial decrease from the previous week’s 205,724 contracts, pointing to reduced trading activity in the Ethereum derivatives market.
The put-to-call ratio for Ethereum options sits at 0.48, reflecting a bullish sentiment among traders. The maximum pain point – the price level where options buyers face the highest losses – is set at $3,450 for Ethereum contracts.
Short-term trading demand has experienced a 66.7% decline, suggesting a cooling of speculative activity in the crypto derivatives market. This reduction in trading volume could intensify price pressure across major cryptocurrencies.
The market’s technical indicators show that Bitcoin needs to recover to $95,668 to regain its bullish momentum. The current price action has established $93,625 as a critical support level that traders are watching closely.
The broader cryptocurrency market has shown sensitivity to these options expirations, with the total market capitalization testing $3.16 trillion as a support level. This represents a notable decline from recent highs and highlights growing caution among market participants.
Alternative cryptocurrencies (altcoins) have faced stronger downward pressure during this market movement. THORChain (RUNE) emerged as one of the most affected tokens, recording an 18% drop to $3.25 and approaching its support level at $2.93.
Other News
The day’s market events coincide with other developments in the crypto space, including James Howells’ unsuccessful legal battle to recover a Bitcoin-filled hard drive worth $770 million from a Newport landfill. The court dismissed the case, citing no realistic prospect of success at trial.
The Graph protocol launched its Geo Genesis tool for Web3 knowledge organization, though its native token GRT faced renewed selling pressure despite previous positive signals. This launch follows the introduction of their GRC-20 standard in November 2024.
Trading volumes across major exchanges reflect the market’s cautious stance, with reduced activity compared to the previous week’s levels. This decline in trading volume aligns with the decrease in options contract numbers.
The options market structure suggests that $97,000 serves as a maximum pain point for Bitcoin contracts, indicating a potential price magnet as contracts approach expiration.
Current market data shows that institutional traders maintain larger positions in call options, despite the recent price corrections and market cap decline.
The most recent market data indicates that $3.19 trillion remains the current total cryptocurrency market capitalization, with immediate support established at $3.16 trillion.
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