BlackRock’s spot bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) options made a major splash on their debut Tuesday, registering an impressive $1.9 billion in notional trading volume. The majority of the activity centered around call options, signaling strong bullish sentiment in the market. Traders appeared to be betting on a dramatic rise in the ETF’s price, with a notable number of contracts targeting $100, a level that would require bitcoin’s value to double.
The ETF closed the day at $52.70, but the most actively traded option was the $100 strike call, with over 32,000 contracts changing hands. Of those, 40% were tied to the December 12 expiration, suggesting that investors are anticipating significant price moves in the coming months.
“This is a fascinating development, watching professionals gravitate toward these higher strike options—betting effectively on a doubling of BTC prices,” commented crypto quant researcher Samneet Chepal on X. The strong demand for the $100 strike call option aligns with trends seen on Deribit, where there’s substantial open interest in the $200,000 bitcoin call, signaling confidence in a potential major price surge.
On the debut day, the most active IBIT options were at the $55 strike, with call options far outpacing puts, at a ratio of four to one. This shows a widespread belief that bitcoin prices will continue to rise. Call options give traders the right to purchase the underlying asset at a specified price, signaling optimism about future price movements.
As more U.S. investors gain access to IBIT options, experts predict this could lead to higher market volatility. According to Luuk Strijers, CEO of Deribit, the growing participation from both retail and institutional investors could fuel further price action and even trigger gamma squeezes, where the price rises rapidly due to options-related hedging activity.
“With more market participants able to engage in options trading through IBIT, we could see substantial open interest build up around key price levels, driving volatility and potentially leading to dramatic price moves,” Strijers explained.
