Roughly 26,000 Bitcoin options contracts—valued at approximately $2.6 billion—are set to expire on Friday, May 9, raising questions about how markets might respond. With spot prices surging and overall crypto sentiment turning bullish, traders are closely watching for volatility as the expiry approaches.
Bitcoin Options Expiry Overview
This week’s batch of expiring Bitcoin options features a put/call ratio of 0.91, suggesting a relatively balanced stance between bearish and bullish traders, with a slight tilt toward puts. The max pain price—where the most contracts would expire worthless—is $93,000, which is around $10,000 below current BTC spot levels.
Open interest is heavily concentrated at the $100,000 strike price, where bullish positions dominate with around $1.8 billion in exposure. Meanwhile, significant open interest also exists at the $80,000 and $85,000 levels, though those strike prices appear less likely to come into play as Bitcoin continues its upward momentum.
From “Chop” to Breakout
Earlier in the week, crypto derivatives platform Greeks Live described the market as stagnant, with traders seeking to profit from time decay while hedging against downside risks. But things have changed quickly—Bitcoin surged over 4% in the past 24 hours, breaking out of its range and hitting a new multi-month high.
Deribit noted in a recent update that although June rate cuts seem unlikely, any dovish pivot from the Fed could spark a broader relief rally in risk assets, including crypto.
Ethereum and Altcoins Join the Rally
Alongside Bitcoin’s price explosion, Ethereum surged more than 20% following the rollout of its Pectra upgrade, pushing ETH above $2,200. Around 164,000 Ethereum options are also expiring today, with a notional value of $257 million, a max pain point at $1,800, and a put/call ratio of 1.2, indicating more bearish positions.
Altcoins like Dogecoin, Cardano, Chainlink, Avalanche, Stellar, and Sui have also seen double-digit gains, contributing to a sharp rise in overall market cap.
Total Market Outlook
The total crypto market capitalization has surged to $3.33 trillion, the highest in three months, fueled by Bitcoin and Ethereum gains. With a total of $2.8 billion in crypto options expiring today, including BTC and ETH contracts, traders are asking the big question: Will markets react to the $2.6 billion Bitcoin options expiry, or is the rally already priced in?
