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Bitcoin options are taking a bigger share of the largest cryptocurrency’s derivatives market in a sign that trading is becoming more sophisticated.
According to Volmex, the issuer of the bitcoin volatility index BVIV, options accounted for just under 60% of open interest among all bitcoin derivatives last week. That’s up from around 50% at the start of the year.
Open interest is the total value of contracts that traders have opened and not yet closed. The market encompasses bitcoin futures, perpetual futures and both bitcoin-native and ETF-based options.
Volmex called the growth a structural shift in bitcoin markets, a sign that trading bitcoin is now about managing risk, not just betting on direction.
Options allow investors to hedge their holdings, earn additional income or bet on a big move without borrowing, so positions can last longer than a leveraged perpetual bet. They are also priced on expected volatility, which is what gauges like Vomex’s BVIV track.
Options are derivative contracts with a fixed expiry date that let traders bet on three things at once. They can bet on the direction of the price, on how big the swings will be and on timing, meaning by when a move will or won't happen.
S. bitcoin exchange-traded funds had about $36 billion in open interest, with BlackRock’s IBIT accounting for nearly $35 billion of the total. Add in options on crypto-native platforms, and the figure rises to roughly $76 billion.
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