Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) options worth more than $2.5 billion are set to expire at 8:00 UTC on Friday, February 6, marking Deribit's first major weekly settlement since cryptocurrency markets collapsed below key technical levels.
Bitcoin accounts for $2.15 billion in notional value. Ethereum comprises the remaining $408 million. The expiry arrives as markets attempt to stabilize.
Bitcoin is trading near $67,200 at the time of writing after briefly testing $66,700 on Thursday.
What Happened
The put-to-call ratio stands at 1.42 for Bitcoin options. Put contracts outnumber calls, reflecting traders' defensive stance ahead of this week's volatility. Ethereum shows a ratio of 1.13, also tilted toward downside protection.
Bitcoin's open interest clusters between $80,000 and $90,000 strikes. These positions were established when markets traded at higher levels before this week's decline.
Ethereum positioning dropped below $2,000. Put open interest concentrates below current spot prices. Call interest remains distributed at higher strikes, though many are now deeply out of the money.
Max pain levels - where the most options expire worthless - sit at $82,000 for Bitcoin and $2,550 for Ethereum according to Deribit data. Both levels lie significantly above current spot prices.
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Why It Matters
The settlement will clear positions established during more optimistic market conditions. As contracts expire, dealer hedging flows that may have influenced price action will dissipate.
Protection demand has increased following the $2.2 billion liquidation cascade on February 1. Markets eliminated approximately $5.4 billion in leveraged positions over 72 hours.
Price behavior after 8:00 UTC Friday may diverge from recent patterns as positioning pressures around major strikes get removed.
Kevin Warsh's nomination as Federal Reserve chair has pushed dollar strength above 97.5. Bitcoin ETFs recorded net outflows exceeding $1.5 billion over the past week.
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