Around 149,000 Bitcoin options contracts with a notional value of approximately $9.6 billion expired on July 31, 2026, marking one of the largest monthly settlements of the year. Simultaneously, 435,000 Ether options worth about $830 million expired, bringing the combined notional value of crypto options expiring to roughly $10.4 billion.
According to data from Greeks.live, the Bitcoin contracts had a put/call ratio of 0.28, indicating a heavy tilt toward calls. The max pain level—the price where the largest value of options would expire worthless—sat at $64,000, very close to the spot price at settlement. Bitcoin briefly touched $65,300 during the day but returned below $64,000, staying within a two-month consolidation range. Ether’s max pain was $1,850 with a put/call ratio of 0.63, reflecting more defensive positioning than Bitcoin. It traded near $1,891 after expiry.
Despite the massive call open interest at $70,000 and $72,000 strikes, Bitcoin failed to break higher. Greeks.live noted that “the conditions for a rally are not in place”, citing limited capital inflows and weak follow-through. The expiry absorbed around 30% of outstanding contracts, yet did little to move the market out of its recent range. Spot Bitcoin ETF flows showed flickering demand, with $233.1 million in net inflows on July 30, led by BlackRock’s IBIT, but earlier in the week flows alternated between gains and losses.
The macro backdrop added to the caution, as the Federal Reserve’s decision to leave interest rates unchanged and renewed military tensions between the US and Iran contributed to a $25 billion drain from crypto markets earlier in the week. With total Bitcoin options open interest across all exchanges hovering around $34.7 billion, traders will next watch whether positions roll into the August 28 expiry, where $3.15 billion is already positioned.
