Crypto
Friday Settles 18.1 Billion Dollars in Bitcoin and Ethereum Options, and the Strikes Show Where the Money Sees the Quarter Ending
This Friday at 08:00 UTC, the crypto derivatives market faces its biggest scheduled event of the quarter. Around 18.1 billion dollars in Bitcoin and Ethereum options expire and settle at once, according to Coinbase Markets, in the quarterly cycle run by Deribit, which handles roughly 85 percent of all BTC and ETH options activity.
The positioning leans decisively toward calls. Bitcoin's open interest put to call ratio sits at 0.66, and the 24 hour trading volume ratio is an even more call tilted 0.37. Ethereum shows the same shape, with 0.61 on open interest and 0.55 on recent volume. Ratios below one mean calls outnumber puts, and the flow has been getting more call heavy, especially in Bitcoin.
The strike map is where it gets interesting. Bitcoin call open interest clusters around the 90,000 and 100,000 dollar strikes. With Bitcoin trading near 86,500 dollars on Wednesday, the 90,000 strike sits about 4 percent above spot and 100,000 nearly 16 percent higher. Ether calls concentrate in the 3,000 to 4,000 dollar range, with Ether near 2,760 dollars, putting 3,000 about 9 percent above spot. These clusters are maps of ambition rather than predictions, with much of the open interest sitting in spreads, hedges and market maker inventory. Together they sketch where traders have placed their upside hopes for the quarter.
Context makes the numbers pop. The expiry has grown from about 16.6 billion dollars in Coinbase's September 15 snapshot to 18.1 billion today, and the rally did the heavy lifting. Bitcoin climbed from around 76,000 dollars on September 17 to an eight month peak above 87,000 on September 21, while Ether rose from about 2,416 dollars on September 16 to an intraday peak above 2,805 on September 21. Rising prices inflate notional open interest on their own, so the growth is part genuine positioning and part the market marking itself up.
Expect the usual expiry choreography. Market makers will adjust hedges as option deltas shift with spot moves toward the big strikes, and that re hedging can amplify intraday swings. Settlement uses a time weighted average of the index between 07:30 and 08:00 UTC, so the final half hour carries the weight. Quarterly expiries of this size have a habit of turning an ordinary Friday into a tape worth watching.
If you hold spot or trade around it, the practical read is straightforward. Friday morning brings concentrated, scheduled volatility, and the market has told you exactly which levels matter to it. Watch 90,000 and 100,000 on Bitcoin and 3,000 on Ether, keep position sizes sane into the settlement window, and remember that the quarter's biggest options event is also a fresh start, with October's board wiped clean for new positioning.
Quick answers
What is this story about?
This Friday at 08:00 UTC, the crypto derivatives market faces its biggest scheduled event of the quarter. Around 18.1 billion dollars in Bitcoin and Ethereum options expire and settle at once, according to Coinbase Markets, in the quarterly cycle run by Deribit, which handles roughly 85 percent of all BTC and ETH options activity.
Why does this story matter?
If you hold spot or trade around it, the practical read is straightforward. Friday morning brings concentrated, scheduled volatility, and the market has told you exactly which levels matter to it. Watch 90,000 and 100,000 on Bitcoin and 3,000 on Ether, keep position sizes sane into the settlement window, and remember that the quarter's biggest options event is also a fresh start, with October's board wiped clean for new positioning.
Sources
- The Paper: $18.1B in Bitcoin and Ethereum options expiring Friday
- Gadgets360: Cryptocurrency prices in India today, September 23 2026
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