CCData said that open interest in bitcoin (BTC) options exceeded $16 billion for the first time in 2023.
On the Chicago CME exchange, the amount of futures contracts also updated an all-time high. Analysts assessed such data as the dominance of bullish sentiment in the digital currency market.
Players are expecting the launch of crypto exchange traded funds ETFs in the US investing in BTC.
However, as early as late December, traders began hedging risks and demand for Put options (to sell digital currency) increased, Bloomberg reported.
On Deribit, the largest options exchange, the ratio of Put/Call contracts has increased in recent days.
Put options, which expire at the end of December, began to focus on the BTC rate in the range of $44,000 to $40,000. That is, traders consider the drawdown to be quite real.
QCP Capital also believes that the effect of launching spot ETFs will be short-term, followed by a fall in BTC and altcoins. Moreover, the largest digital currency may collapse to $36,000.
As Deribit CEO Lucas Strayers noted, Put options have become in high demand as investors prefer to minimize the effects of a negative scenario that could return to the market as early as January 12.