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<p>Bitcoin and Ethereum options worth about $1.75 billion expired on July 10 as traders maintained a cautious view of the crypto market.</p>
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   <li>Bitcoin options worth $1.5 billion expired as traders watched the key $62,000 maximum pain level.</li>
   <li>Ethereum’s 1.26 put-call ratio reflected unusually high demand for downside protection during the weekly expiry.</li>
   <li>Institutional traders sold short-term calls, suggesting limited confidence in a sustained crypto market rally ahead.</li>
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<p>According to data shared by Greeks.live, about 23,000 Bitcoin options expired with a notional value of $1.5 billion. The contracts had a put-call ratio of 0.97 and a maximum pain level of $62,000.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, 140,000 Ethereum options expired with a notional value of $250 million. The ETH contracts carried a put-call ratio of 1.26 and a maximum pain level of $1,700.</p>
<p>You might also like: <a href="https://crypto.news/robinhood-chain-did-570m-volume-on-21m-of-liquidity-the-launch-week-autopsy/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow"> Robinhood Chain did $570M volume on $21M of liquidity. The launch-week autopsy </a></p>
<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="strong-bitcoin-options-traders-limit-short-term-upside-strong"><strong>Bitcoin options traders limit short-term upside</strong></h2>
<p>Bitcoin remained above $60,000 for most of the week and briefly reached $64,000 during Asian trading on Friday. The price later stayed close to a resistance area between $64,000 and $64,500.</p>
<p>The weekly expiry covered about 7% of outstanding options, making it smaller than recent monthly and quarterly settlements. Therefore, the contracts alone were unlikely to cause a lasting move in the spot market.</p>
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   <p>July 10 Options Data<br><br>23,000 BTC options expired, with a put-call ratio of 0.97, a maximum pain point of $62,000, and a notional value of $1.5 billion.<br>140,000 ETH options expired, with a put-call ratio of 1.26, a maximum pain point of $1,700, and a notional value of $250… <a href="https://t.co/6sx0FWNJMF" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">pic.twitter.com/6sx0FWNJMF</a></p>— Greeks.live (@GreeksLive) <a href="https://x.com/GreeksLive/status/2075489240713228787?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">July 10, 2026</a>
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<p>Bitcoin’s gamma exposure was concentrated near $64,000. A large number of call options also accumulated around that level, which may affect dealer hedging as the price moves through the strike.</p>
<p>However, Greeks.live said large call trades increased during the week because traders sold short-term calls slightly above the market price. This strategy generates income when traders expect an asset to remain flat or fail to rise beyond a selected strike.</p>
<p>The activity suggested that institutional traders had doubts about Bitcoin’s near-term upward momentum. Still, the 0.97 put-call ratio showed that the total number of puts and calls in the expiry remained nearly balanced.</p>
<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="strong-options-skew-retains-downside-bias-strong"><strong>Options skew retains downside bias</strong></h2>
<p>In a separate options market update, Greeks.live said Bitcoin’s 25-delta skew had stabilized after a sharp repricing during June.</p>
<p>The one-day, seven-day and one-month readings stood at -6.4%, -6.7% and -7%, respectively. Negative skew means traders are paying more for downside protection than for similar bullish positions.</p>
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   <p>BTC's 25 delta skew has stabilized across the curve following the sharp repricing observed through June, although downside protection continues to command a premium across all major maturities. Current readings stand at -6.4% (1D), -6.7% (7D), and -7.0% (1M), indicating that… <a href="https://t.co/An1c7KyrgY" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">pic.twitter.com/An1c7KyrgY</a></p>— Greeks.live (@GreeksLive) <a href="https://x.com/GreeksLive/status/2074492333391847856?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">July 7, 2026</a>
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<p>“Puts continue to trade at a premium to calls across all major expirations,” the firm said.&nbsp;</p>
<p>However, it added that the size of that premium had become more uniform across different contract periods.</p>
<p>The data showed that defensive demand was no longer concentrated only in contracts close to expiry. Medium-term options also accounted for a larger part of the downside premium.</p>
<p>Greeks.live described the setup as a “more normalized term structure” but said options pricing retained “a persistent downside bias.” The statement reflects current positioning and does not guarantee that Bitcoin will decline.</p>
<p>The July 3 expiry also <a href="https://crypto.news/1-9b-bitcoin-options-expiry-tests-btcs-60k-recovery/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">showed</a> demand for short-term downside protection. That event involved $1.9 billion in BTC options, with maximum pain at $61,000.</p>
<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="strong-ethereum-puts-remain-unusually-elevated-strong"><strong>Ethereum puts remain unusually elevated</strong></h2>
<p>Ethereum’s put-call ratio reached 1.26, meaning put options outnumbered calls in the weekly batch. The ratio remained high for a second consecutive week after reaching 1.29 during the previous expiry.</p>
<p>Greeks.live linked much of that activity to protective positions with strike prices below $1,500. These puts were deeply out of the money as expiry approached, but they showed that some traders had hedged against a sharper ETH decline.</p>
<p>Ethereum gamma exposure was concentrated near $1,750, with call accumulation also visible around the level. However, ETH remained below the $1,700 maximum pain area during parts of the settlement period.</p>
<p>Ether traders showed heavier put demand during the July 3 expiry. The earlier batch included 135,000 ETH contracts with a 1.29 put-call ratio and maximum pain at $1,650.</p>
<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="strong-broader-markets-keep-crypto-activity-subdued-strong"><strong>Broader markets keep crypto activity subdued</strong></h2>
<p>The options expiry followed a week of mixed price action across crypto and traditional markets. U.S. and South Korean equities also faced corrections, while traders assessed interest-rate policy and geopolitical risks.</p>
<p>As reported by crypto.news,<a href="https://crypto.news/tag/interest-rates/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Bitcoin recently lost the $64,000 level after a hawkish Federal Reserve decision</a>. The change in rate expectations reduced demand for several risk assets.</p>
<p>Open interest remained large despite the smaller weekly expiry. Bitcoin options open interest across exchanges stood near $28.7 billion, while Ethereum options open interest was about $4.4 billion.</p>
<p>Read more: <a href="https://crypto.news/ethereum-foundation-dissolves-key-protocol-coordination-team/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow"> Ethereum Foundation dissolves key protocol coordination team </a></p>

Bitcoin faces $62K max pain as $1.75B crypto options expire

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