BITCOIN MAY LOOK QUIET, BUT THE OPTIONS MARKET IS ALIVE.
$BTC is chopping between $65K–$73K, yet under the surface, the derivatives market is tense.
Open interest has surged to 452k BTC (up from 255k BTC after December expiry).
1- and 3-month implied volatility jumped roughly 10 vols.
Put demand spiked, skew widened from 6% to 18%.
This isn’t about betting on a rally. It’s aggressive hedging.
Even more telling: options remain cheap relative to realized volatility, meaning there’s fuel for implied volatility to rise further, not fall. The pressure is building, not easing.
Dealers are short gamma between
$58K–$74K. Translation: once Bitcoin breaks out of this range, hedging flows can amplify the move and history shows downside cracks can be brutal.
On the chart, price seems calm. In the plumbing, stress is screaming. And when that gap widens, Bitcoin rarely stays quiet for long.