BTC Soars to $118K Pre-Options Expiry as Bhutan Sells BTC
Bitcoin surged past $118,000 and Ethereum briefly reclaimed $3,000 as traders brace for a major options expiry. Deribit-listed BTC contracts worth $4.3 billion and ETH contracts worth $710 million expire today, with Bitcoin’s put/call ratio at 1.05 (max pain $108,000) and Ethereum’s at 1.11 (max pain $2,600). Analytics platform Greeks.Live warns of extreme 500× leverage positions despite muted institutional involvement. Meanwhile, the Royal Government of Bhutan offloaded 100.215 BTC (~$11.83 million) to Binance—part of a year-long sale of 2,262 BTC at an average of $88,612—leaving 11,611 BTC (~$1.37 billion) on its balance sheet. Traders should expect heightened volatility as market makers hedge positions, testing support levels in the short term amid bullish long-term trends.
Neutral
The options expiry of $4.3 billion in BTC and $710 million in ETH, combined with high put/call ratios, signals short-term bearish pressure and potential price swings around key pain points. The Royal Government of Bhutan’s modest sale of 100 BTC adds slight supply-side pressure but is unlikely to move markets materially. Extreme 500× leverage positions heighten volatility risk as market makers hedge. While traders should prepare for rapid intra-day moves and possible pullbacks to support levels, underlying bullish momentum and institutional caution point to a neutral overall impact on Bitcoin’s price in the medium term.