Will $2.8B Bitcoin Options Expiry Keep Markets Moving? 

Around 25,400 Bitcoin options contracts will expire on Friday, May 23, and they have a notional value of roughly $2.8 billion.

This week’s event is pretty much identical to last week’s, as derivatives crypto trading has stabilized. Spot markets have seen solid growth with Bitcoin notching a new peak on Thursday above $111,000 for the first time.

Crypto Options Expiry

This week’s batch of Bitcoin options contracts has a put/call ratio of 1.2, meaning that there are more short contracts expiring than longs, who are betting on higher prices. There is also a max pain point of $103,000, around $8,000 below current spot prices, which is where most losses will be made on expiry.

Moreover, this is more than $1 billion in open interest (OI), or the value or number of BTC options contracts yet to expire, at higher strike prices between $110,000 and $130,000 as speculators bet on another new all-time high.

Options Expiry Alert

BTC hit $111,944. Now ~$3.3B in notional BTC and ETH is set to expire Tomorrow on Deribit.$BTC: Notional: $2.76B | Put/Call: 1.20 | Max Pain: $103K$ETH: Notional:$526M | Put/Call: 1.23 | Max Pain: $2,400

Strike activity?
BTC traders are eyeing… pic.twitter.com/XXLgZJrXZ8

— Deribit (@DeribitOfficial) May 22, 2025

In a market sentiment report this week, crypto derivatives provider Greeks Live said the group is “predominantly bullish with expectations of continued upward momentum despite some cautioning about an upcoming 15% to 20% correction.”

They added that key levels being watched include $110,000 as immediate support, $120,000 as a near-term target, and $150,000 to $200,000 as longer-term targets. However, “negative funding rates suggest many are still shorting despite the rally,” they said.

In addition to today’s batch of Bitcoin options, there are around 201,000 Ethereum contracts that are also expiring today, with a notional value of $547 million, a max pain point of $2,400, and a put/call ratio of 1.23. This brings Friday’s combined crypto options expiry notional value to around $3.3 billion.

Greeks commented on Ethereum’s underperformance relative to Bitcoin being “notable, with ETH failing to follow BTC’s new all-time high despite expectations for ETH to reach $3,000 by June.”

Crypto Market Outlook

Total market capitalization is at its highest since early February at $3.65 trillion. However, it has been solely driven by Bitcoin.

BTC hit an all-time high of $111,814 in late trading on May 22, and it has remained very close to that level during Friday morning’s Asian session, suggesting it could push higher.

Ethereum’s moves have been muted with the asset pushing towards $2,700 at the time of writing following a 4% gain.

Most of the altcoins are performing well this Friday, with better gains for Cardano, Hyperliquid, Avalanche, and Bitcoin Cash.