Over $3.1 Billion in Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) Options Expire Today, Raising the Potential for Increased Volatility

According to Deribit data, approximately $2.66 billion in BTC options and $525 million in ETH options will expire, marking one of the largest expiry events of the quarter.

A massive batch of Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) options are set to expire on Friday morning, potentially setting the stage for increased volatility in the crypto market.

According to Deribit data, about $2.66 billion in BTC options and $525 million in ETH options will expire by 8:00 AM (GMT+8) on Friday, August 25. This makes it one of the largest expiry events of the quarter.

Usually, large expirations like this lead to short-term price swings as traders adjust their positions or hedge against unexpected moves.

The put-to-call ratio for Bitcoin stands at 0.99, indicating a nearly even balance between bearish and bullish positions in the options market.

The "max pain" level, or the price at which the most options expire worthless, is set at $100,000. With Bitcoin currently trading above that threshold at $101,800, the $100K mark could serve as a gravitational pull in the short term.

Option sellers, aiming to reduce payouts, may have an incentive to steer prices closer to that level ahead of Friday’s expiry.

Moreover, options skew remains neutral, suggesting a lack of strong directional bets, which could further amplify the influence of technical levels like max pain.

In this scenario, the max pain level could emerge as a focal point for short-term price movements in the final days of August.

Meanwhile, the put-to-call ratio for Ethereum (ETH) stands at 1.24, signaling that more traders are betting on a price drop by buying puts than expecting a rise with calls.

The key "max pain" level is $2,200. Since Ethereum is currently trading above that at about $2,500, the $2,200 mark could act as a support zone in the short term.

Sellers of options might try to keep the price near this level to limit their losses before the contracts expire.

Implied volatility skew also points to a cautious market, with a slight bias toward protection against price drops. Given this setup, the max pain price could be an important factor shaping Ethereum’s price moves in the coming days.

The expiration of over $3.1 billion in BTC and ETH options could spark short-term market volatility as traders and option sellers try to minimize their losses by influencing the price toward "max pain" levels. This often leads to bigger price swings and increased trading activity around expiry.