BTC selloff and $1.89B options expiry keep bears in control

Bitcoin selloff coincided with a large options expiry on June 5, as traders weighed whether a combined $1.89B BTC+ETH put flow would add further downside. About 25,600 BTC options expired, with $1.62B notional. Greeks.live said BTC traded well below the key “max pain” level near $70,500, and active hedging demand increased. The BTC put-call ratio fell to 0.56, while put positions grew around $68,000, $65,000 and $60,000 as BTC slipped under $70,000. Short-term volatility rose and downside skew worsened, but traders still avoided a clear one-way crash bet. Ethereum also saw heavy expiry: roughly 155,000 ETH options expired with about $270M notional. The ETH put-call ratio was 0.92, and max pain hovered near $2,000, keeping $2,000 as the near-term sentiment pivot. Previously, May expiry pricing reset without restoring strong buying demand, and attention shifted toward June, where a larger share of options open interest is concentrated. Macro risk added pressure. Hopes for a Middle East ceasefire briefly weighed on oil and gold, but Hezbollah rejected the deal and Israel said it would not withdraw troops, keeping uncertainty around U.S.-Iran talks and energy routes alive. For traders, the next checkpoints remain technical and options-driven. A BTC recovery back above ~$63,000 could ease put pressure, while a push toward ~$60,000 may keep bearish positioning active. For ETH, holding and reclaiming ~$2,000 is critical to improve near-term tone. BTC options expiry signals a cautious market rather than renewed bullish demand.