In total, $1.3 billion worth of Bitcoin ($BTC) options are set to expire today, September 13, 2024, while another $298 million worth of Ethereum ($ETH) options contracts are also set to expire, injecting uncertainty into the cryptocurrency market.
With a combined notional value of nearly $1.6 billion, the expiration of these contracts, representing 23,000 BTC and 127,000 ETH, could trigger increased volatility in the coming days. According to analysts at Greeks.live, the put/call ratio for Bitcoin options contracts stands at 0.87, suggesting a bias toward put options, which give holders the right, but not the obligation, to sell BTC at a predetermined price.
The analysts noted that the “maximum pain point” for Bitcoin, the price at which most options contracts would expire worthless, sits at $58,000. Ethereum options, they wrote, have a put/call ratio of 0.73, with a “maximum pain point” at $2,400.
At the time of writing, Bitcoin is trading around $58,200 after gaining more than 3.5% over the past week. This rise comes after a significant drop from around $64,000 at the end of last month to a low of less than $53,000 in early September before the cryptocurrency began to recover.
Analysts noted that “maxpain point is once again following price” and that September was “weak as expected, with ETH in particular extremely weak” compared to other digital assets.
As CryptoGlobe reported, Bitcoin holders moved about $750 million worth of the flagship cryptocurrency off centralized exchanges in a single day this week, leading to the largest net outflow from Bitcoin since May.
Historically, similar exits have been followed by price increases, as often lower supply on exchanges can lead to higher prices if demand remains stable or increases.
Featured image via Pixabay.
