Crypto Markets Slip as $28.5 Billion Deribit Expiry Looms, Traders Brace for Year-End Volatility
Deribit is set to expire over $28.5 billion in BTC and ETH options on Friday, marking the largest expiry in the exchange's history and accounting for more than half of its $52.2 billion open interest. Bitcoin trades around $88,000, with BTC at approximately $88,272.62 after briefly surpassing $90,000, while Ethereum remains under $3,000.
Amid this, shares of Hut 8 (HUT) rose about 16% following news of a 15-year AI data center lease with Fluidstack. Coinbase (COIN) and Robinhood (HOOD) also advanced, though off their session highs, and MicroStrategy (MSTR) fluctuated from gains to a modest loss.
Deribit chief commercial officer Jean-David Pequignot described the year-end expiry as the culmination of a year defined by institutional maturity and a shift toward a policy-driven supercycle. A crucial focal point remains BTC’s $96,000 “max pain” level, with around $1.2 billion in open interest clustered at the $85,000 strike in puts, which could potentially press spot prices lower if exercised.
Options market structure shows reduced but still present caution. While call spreads targeting $100,000–$125,000 remain, short-term protective puts have become more expensive. Traders are rolling defensive positions forward, moving from December $85,000–$70,000 puts to January $80,000–$75,000 put spreads, reflecting hedging into the year-end but lingering wariness about the new year.
The market context emphasizes choppy price action and thinning liquidity, suggesting caution as 2026 approaches.
