Big Bitcoin & Ethereum Options Expiry is set to hit the crypto market on Friday, with traders watching closely as both assets hover just below key resistance zones.
According to the latest market data, about 147,000 Bitcoin options and 573,000 Ethereum options contracts are due to expire on Nov. 28. The timing—falling at the end of the month—makes this expiry larger than usual and raises the stakes for market volatility.
Open interest clusters around max pain
Data from Coinglass shows Bitcoin options currently hold a put-to-call ratio of 0.58, meaning traders are leaning more bullish than bearish heading into the expiry. The biggest concentration of open interest is sitting right near the max pain strike price—where most option buyers would lose the largest amount of money. There are also notable pockets of open interest at lower strike levels, suggesting some hedging remains in play.
Ethereum options reflect a similar setup. With a put-to-call ratio of 0.50, open interest is almost evenly balanced, but call holders have a slight edge. The total notional value tied to Friday’s expiries across both BTC and ETH represents a substantial amount of market positioning.
Market steadies after leverage shakeout
The market recently experienced a sharp decline in derivatives open interest—the largest drop so far this cycle—according to analysis from CryptoQuant. This move is being described less as the start of a market downturn and more as a healthy leverage flush, clearing excessive risk from the system.
Fresh U.S. PPI inflation data earlier this week also surprised to the upside, sparking caution across risk assets, including crypto. Still, overall market sentiment hasn’t flipped bearish.
Options exchange Deribit noted that positioning has now steadied despite the turbulence:
“Open interest is clustering around key levels, despite the fear,” the report said, adding that elevated call positioning may reflect improving confidence among traders.
Bitcoin and Ethereum remain capped by resistance
While the overall crypto market cap has held relatively stable in the last 24 hours, major assets continue to struggle with upside breakouts. Bitcoin has repeatedly tested resistance but remains just under the threshold. Ethereum, meanwhile, slipped back beneath a key resistance area during Asian trading earlier today.
With a massive options expiry landing at such a critical price zone, traders will be watching closely to see whether bulls can finally push through—or whether max pain drags the market back down.
Also Read: Cooling Failure Halts CME Group Trading Across Major Markets
