Yeliz Akmaca 
The week and the month are coming to an end, marking the expiration of a significant batch of Bitcoin and Ether options. On Friday, Jan. 30, roughly 91,000 Bitcoin options contracts will expire, with a notional value of approximately $8.3 billion. This expiry is larger than previous ones this month, particularly as the final one for January.
Crypto markets have lost about $215 billion this week. The Federal Reserve kept interest rates at 3.5–3.75%, well above the 2% target, adding pressure to markets. Geopolitical tensions in the Middle East have also reignited, increasing investor anxiety.
Bitcoin Options Expiry
This week’s large Bitcoin options batch shows a 0.54 put/call ratio, meaning calls (longs) exceed puts (shorts). According to Coinglass, the “max pain” level is around $90,000, above current spot prices, leaving many contracts out of the money at expiry.
The highest open interest (OI) is at $100,000, with roughly $1.9 billion of options on Deribit. Additionally, over $1 billion in OI exists at $75,000, $80,000, and $85,000, showing growing bearish bets.
🚨 Options Expiry Alert 🚨
At 8:00 UTC tomorrow, over $9.5B in crypto options are set to expire.$BTC: $8.27B notional | Put/Call: 0.54 | Max Pain: $90K$ETH: $1.27B notional | Put/Call: 0.74 | Max Pain: $3.1K
BTC is trading sideways just under $90K going into expiry, while… pic.twitter.com/vEXRIaIreO
— Deribit (@DeribitOfficial) January 29, 2026
Total Bitcoin options OI across all exchanges has been rising since the start of the year, reaching $58 billion. Deribit warns that “expiry could amplify moves around key max pain zones,” which aligns with recent spot market declines. Ethereum also faces 440,000 expiring contracts, valued at $1.3 billion, max pain at $3,100, and a 0.74 put/call ratio. Total ETH options OI across exchanges is around $35 billion.
In total, crypto options expiries this week reach $9.6 billion in notional value.
Spot Market Outlook
Crypto markets tumbled during Friday morning’s Asia session, with total capitalization dropping below $3 trillion, the lowest since mid-December. Bitcoin broke support, falling 8% to $81,300, the lowest since April, while Ether dropped 9% to around $2,700. Altcoins saw double-digit losses, confirming a bear market trend.
Analysts note that the options expiry could increase volatility in spot markets, especially near max pain levels, potentially triggering sharp sell-offs.
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