On June 12, approximately $2.5 billion in Bitcoin and Ethereum options expired, causing the market to refocus on the $60,000 to $62,000 range for Bitcoin. Although the expiration volume was higher than last week, it remained below typical monthly or quarterly large expirations, making it more likely to amplify short-term volatility rather than independently alter the overall trend.
Bitcoin expiration volume is larger
During this expiration, the notional value of Bitcoin options was approximately $2.23 billion, corresponding to about 35,000 contracts. The notional value of Ethereum options was approximately $293 million, corresponding to about 175,000 contracts.
From a price performance perspective, BTC was near $62,900, still close to a key support area; ETH was around $1,656, showing limited rebound strength. Overall market sentiment remained weak, with selling pressure evident on both spot and derivatives markets.
$60,000 to $62,000 is the key support range.
GreeksLive data shows that market makers' downside exposure to Bitcoin is primarily concentrated between $60,000 and $62,000, with the most significant short exposure near $60,000. This suggests that if BTC falls back into this range, hedging and stop-loss orders from market makers may increase simultaneously, potentially amplifying short-term volatility.
Deribit’s data shows that the put/call ratio for this round of Bitcoin options is approximately 0.66 to 0.68, with overall open interest still leaning bullish. However, Bitcoin’s “maximum pain” price is around $66,000 to $67,000, above the current spot price.
Ethereum holdings also lean bullish.
On Ethereum, the put/call ratio for this options cycle is approximately 0.58 to 0.62, indicating that the open interest structure is also more bullish. Deribit data shows that ETH’s maximum pain is around $1,750, but the spot price remains near $1,650 without a clear recovery.
This also means that, although the options structure has not clearly shifted toward defense, the spot market has not yet provided stronger signals of a rebound. Viewed in isolation, this expiration event alone is insufficient to reverse the broader market direction.
Spot trading volume remains weak.
Previous reports showed that encrypted spot trading volume had dropped to $679 billion in April, with weakening retail demand. The market faced not only selling pressure but also insufficient buying interest to absorb it. Under these conditions, the concentrated expiration of options is more likely to amplify existing volatility rather than trigger an independent price movement.
In addition to pressures within the crypto market itself, geopolitical risks, inflation concerns, and a broader decline in risk appetite continue to weigh on market sentiment.