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Bitcoin price outlook as over $14 billion in BTC options expire today

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Bitcoin price is trading over an ascending trendline support on the daily chart.

Bitcoin price fell below the $70,000 mark as traders prepared for a massive Bitcoin options expiry set to occur later today.

Summary

  • Bitcoin price slipped to $69,990 ahead of a $18.6 billion crypto options expiry on Deribit, with BTC options accounting for over $14.1 billion in open interest.
  • The $75,000 max pain level remains a key magnet as market makers may attempt to steer prices higher to minimize payout obligations.
  • Technical indicators remain supportive, but $71,000 resistance and $69,000 support will likely dictate short-term price direction.

According to data from crypto.news, Bitcoin (BTC) price fell roughly 2.5% to $69,990 last check on Friday, March 27, after bulls faced rejection at the $72,000 psychological resistance.

Bitcoin’s price drop can mainly be attributed to market sentiment turning cautious ahead of a massive $18.6 billion options expiry across the crypto market on the crypto exchange Deribit at 08:00 UTC. Out of the total market, Bitcoin options alone account for over $14.1 billion, which represents nearly 40% of the platform’s total open interest.

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For context, options are contracts that allow traders to buy or sell an asset at a set price by a specific date. A call option gives the holder the right to buy the asset, while a put option provides the right to sell it.

As such, a Bitcoin options contract gives investors the ability to hedge against volatility or speculate on future price movements. However, traders do not necessarily have to purchase the underlying asset if the price movement does not favor their position.

According to Deribit’s data, the maximum pain price, where the most options would expire and become worthless, lies at $75,000 at a key psychological resistance level.

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Analysts note that Bitcoin, currently trading just around $70,000, could gradually move toward the $75,000 level as large institutions or market makers with significant capital attempt to steer the spot price closer to this level in order to minimize payout obligations.

The massive options expiry falls on the same date when U.S. President Donald Trump has set a potential deal with Iran to end the ongoing conflict between them in the Middle East. This follows after Trump revealed that the U.S. would be postponing a military strike on Iran’s infrastructure after he communicated with diplomatic channels, despite Iran’s previous denials of such negotiations.

Today’s massive expiry also coincides with a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission deadline for 91 crypto ETF filings that could further reshape the institutional landscape.

During previous cycles when large amounts of options expired, the crypto market crashed. However, this time, it remains to be seen if the market will hold steady, especially if the U.S.-Iran deal successfully eases global tension.

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On the daily chart, Bitcoin price has respected an ascending trendline that has been acting as a dynamic support for price since its drop in February. As long as Bitcoin price remains above this diagonal floor, it could stay firmly on a bullish path toward new all-time highs.

Bitcoin price is trading over an ascending trendline support on the daily chart.
Bitcoin price is trading over an ascending trendline support on the daily chart — March 26 | Source: crypto.news

The SuperTrend indicator showed a green signal on the daily timeframe, which means the broader market trend is still considered positive for buyers. Furthermore, the Chaikin Money Flow index is close to turning positive, a sign that institutional buying pressure is beginning to outweigh selling volume.

For now, $71,000 is the key psychological hurdle that traders will be keeping an eye on during the London and New York sessions. A decisive break above this could trigger a short squeeze that sends BTC price rapidly toward the max pain zone.

On the contrary, $69,000, which aligns with the 23.6% Fibonacci retracement level, could serve as the final line of defense for bulls before a deeper correction toward the $65,000 region.

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Disclosure: This article does not represent investment advice. The content and materials featured on this page are for educational purposes only.

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Crypto World

Fenbushi Co-Founder Offers Bounty to Recover $42M Stolen Crypto

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Fenbushi Co-Founder Offers Bounty to Recover $42M Stolen Crypto

Investigators have frozen about $1.2 million as efforts continue to trace funds lost in a wallet breach linked to a seed phrase compromise.

Bo Shen, the co-founder of venture capital firm Fenbushi Capital, offered a bounty to recover about $42 million in digital assets stolen from his personal wallet in a 2022 hack. 

Shen said Thursday that he was offering a 10%-20% bounty on the recovered amount to any individual or organization that makes a substantial contribution to recovering the assets. Shen said onchain investigators ZachXBT and Taylor “Tayvano” Monahan had already helped freeze about $1.2 million in related assets. He said his team would distribute rewards once the recovery is complete.

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The bounty revives a case Shen first disclosed in November 2022, when he said roughly $42 million in crypto had been drained from his personal wallet. At the time, he said the stolen funds were personal and did not affect Fenbushi-related entities.

Blockchain analytics company SlowMist later said the theft was caused by a compromise of Shen’s mnemonic seed phrase.  Shen said the renewed push comes after investigators developed new leads and a clearer picture of how the stolen assets moved, though any recovery remains uncertain.

Source: Bo Shen

SlowMist said the stolen assets included about $38.2 million in USDC (USDC), 1,607 Ether (ETH), nearly 720,000 USDt (USDT) and 4.13 Bitcoin (BTC). These assets were later moved through exchanges, including ChangeNow and SideShift. 

Shen says improved tracing tools expanded recovery efforts

Shen said onchain tracking and security investigation tools were less developed when the hack occurred in 2022, limiting the ability to trace funds across chains and platforms. 

He said that recent advances in artificial intelligence-driven data analysis and onchain forensics improved the ability of investigators to follow asset flows and identify relevant transaction patterns. 

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Related: Hacked crypto tokens drop 61% on average and rarely recover, Immunefi report says

Shen said the effort could also serve as a test case for how newer tools and coordination methods can support long-running investigations. He said the case highlights how technological progress may expand what is possible in tracing and responding to crypto-related incidents. 

However, any recovery remains uncertain, even with better tracing tools and fresh leads.

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