Bitcoin under $74K as $9B options expiry favors bears
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- Bitcoin retested $72,500 on Thursday, its lowest level in six weeks, wiping out $342 million of leveraged long positions, then recovered to $73,500.
- Deribit holds about 70 % of the May options market, with $3.4 billion in call open interest and $2.91 billion in put open interest, and if Bitcoin stays below $74,000 at Friday’s $9 billion expiry, only $306 million of calls will be in‑the‑money versus $1.05 billion of puts.
- Laevitas reported a put‑to‑call volume ratio of 0.8 on Thursday, reflecting $1.57 billion of call trades versus $1.29 billion of puts, a neutral but bearish‑leaning stance compared with the prior week.
- Spot Bitcoin ETFs saw net outflows of $1.07 billion over two days, contributing to the market’s bearish tilt.
- Sequans Communications announced it will fully liquidate its Bitcoin holdings, and other corporate holders such as Trump Media and Technology Group have also scaled back their positions.
Why it matters: Bears profit $1.05 billion from puts while leveraged long traders lose $342 million; $1.07 billion ETF outflows and corporate liquidations shrink demand, pushing Bitcoin further down in the short term.
