Bitcoin pushes to $40K, but are bulls strong enough to win Friday’s $735M options expiry?

2 years ago

Bitcoin (BTC) terms has been stuck successful a falling wedge signifier for the past 2 months and during this clip it has tested the $37,600 enactment connected aggregate instances. 

Adding to this “bearish” terms action, BTC is down 16% year-to-date, which is successful enactment with the Russell 2000s performance.

Bitcoin/USD 1-day illustration astatine FTX. Source: TradingView

The existent operator of Bitcoin’s existent terms enactment are investors’ concerns of worsening macroeconomic conditions. Professional investors are disquieted astir the interaction of the U.S. Federal Reserve’s tightening economical policies and connected May 3, billionaire hedge money manager Paul Tudor Jones said that the situation for investors is worse than ever due to the fact that the monetary authorization is raising involvement rates erstwhile fiscal conditions are already worsening.

On May 4, CNBC reported that the European Union implemented caller sanctions to signifier retired Russian crude lipid imports wrong six months and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said, "This volition beryllium a implicit import prohibition connected each Russian oil, seaborne and pipeline, crude and refined."

For these reasons, traders are progressively acrophobic astir the imaginable interaction of a planetary macroeconomic situation connected cryptocurrency markets. If planetary economies participate a recession, investors volition question extortion by moving distant from risk-on plus classes similar Bitcoin.

Bulls did not expect prices beneath $40,000

The unfastened involvement for the May 6 options expiry successful Bitcoin is $735 million, but the existent fig volition beryllium little since bulls were caught by astonishment arsenic BTC moved beneath $40,000.

Bitcoin options aggregate unfastened involvement for May 6. Source: CoinGlass

The 1.22 call-to-put ratio reflects the $405 cardinal telephone (buy) unfastened involvement against the $330 cardinal enactment (sell) options. Nevertheless, arsenic Bitcoin stands adjacent $39,000, 89% of the bullish bets volition apt go worthless.

Meanwhile, if Bitcoin's terms remains beneath $39,000 connected May 6, bears volition person $100 cardinal worthy of these enactment (sell) options available. This quality happens due to the fact that determination is nary usage successful a close to merchantability Bitcoin astatine $36,000 if it trades supra that level connected expiry.

Related: BTC terms gains 4% pre-Fed arsenic MicroStrategy vows to support Bitcoin from $21K crash

Bears tin unafraid a $145 cardinal nett connected Friday

Below are the 4 astir apt scenarios based connected the existent terms action. The fig of options contracts disposable connected May 6 for telephone (buy) and enactment (sell) instruments varies, depending connected the expiry price. The imbalance favoring each broadside constitutes the theoretical profit:

  • Between $37,000 and $39,000: 500 calls (buy) vs. 4,300 puts (sell). The nett effect favors bears by $145 million.
  • Between $39,000 and $40,000: 1,200 calls (buy) vs. 2,500 puts (sell). Bears person a $50 cardinal advantage.
  • Between $40,000 and $41,000: 3,800 calls (buy) vs. 1,100 puts (sell). The nett effect favors bulls by $105 million.
  • Between $41,000 and $42,000: 5,300 calls (buy) vs. 700 puts (sell). Bulls boost their gains to $190 million.

This crude estimation considers the telephone options utilized successful bullish bets and the enactment options exclusively successful neutral-to-bearish trades. Even so, this oversimplification disregards much analyzable concern strategies.

For example, a trader could person sold a telephone option, efficaciously gaining antagonistic vulnerability to Bitcoin supra a circumstantial price, but unfortunately, there's nary casual mode to estimation this effect.

Bitcoin bears request to prolong the terms beneath $39,000 connected May 6 to unafraid a $145 cardinal profit. On the different hand, bulls tin debar a nonaccomplishment by pushing BTC supra $40,000, capable to nett them $100 cardinal successful gains. Considering the bearish macroeconomic conditions, bears look amended positioned for Friday's expiry.

The views and opinions expressed present are solely those of the author and bash not needfully bespeak the views of Cointelegraph. Every concern and trading determination involves risk. You should behaviour your ain probe erstwhile making a decision.

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