Blockchain
Record $3.7 Billion in Bitcoin Options Set to Expire After Open Interest Surpasses $9 Billion
Open interest on Bitcoin options has increased steadily over the last few months to surpass $9 billion, $3.7 billion of which are set to expire on January 29 – a new record – as speculation and institutional adoption keeps growing. According to data from crypto analytics website Bybt, open options contracts are now worth around […]

Open interest on Bitcoin options has increased steadily over the last few months to surpass $9 billion, $3.7 billion of which are set to expire on January 29 – a new record – as speculation and institutional adoption keeps growing.
According to data from crypto analytics website Bybt, open options contracts are now worth around 245,700 BTC – over $9 billion at press time – and most are traded on Deribit. Other top bitcoin options exchanges including OKEx, FTX, LedgerX, and the CME.

Bitcoin options contracts, it’s worth noting, give investors the right but not the obligation to buy or sell BTC at a specific pried within a set time period. Investors use options to bet on the future price of the cryptocurrency without having to trade it. Call options allow the holders to buy bitcoin at a stated price within the specific timeframe, while put options allow the holder to sell bitcoin.
Interest in bitcoin options has risen sharply over the last few months, after bitcoin’s price moved from about $11,000 to a new all-time high near $42,000 and subsequently corrected to $36,200 at press time, according to CryptoCompare data.
On January 29, options contracts worth around 101,000 BTC, or $3.7 billion, are set to expire. The figure is a new record and some analysts believe it could influence cryptocurrency markets. As Business Insider reports, open interest in calls – bets on BTC’s price rising – is considerably bigger than the open interest in puts – bets on BTC’s price falling.
Speaking to the publication Craig Erlam, market analyst at currency firm Oanda, said:
It reflects just how volatile [Bitcoin] has become, even by its own standards, over the last couple of months.
Per Erlam, the price movements we are now regularly seeing are “incredible,” and as such options are being more utilized. It’s believed that BTC has become more attractive as central banks are flooding economies with cash amid the coronavirus pandemic, leading to worries about possible inflation and currency debasement.
According to a website tracking bitcoin’s use in corporations’ treasuries, dozens of corporations now have exposure to BTC, and some have seen their investments appreciate significantly since they bought the cryptocurrency.
MicroStrategies’ $1.125 billion bet on the flagship cryptocurrency, for example, saw it buy 70,470 BTC, which are now worth over $2.5 billion. Similarly, Square’s $50 million are now $168 million. Some of the other publicly traded firms with bitcoin exposure include BTC mining firms like Hut 8 Mining, Argo Blockchain, and Riot Blockchain.
Nicholas Pelecanos, head of trading at NEM, said:
Due to the complexity involved with trading, options volumes give us a good indication of the number of sophisticated investors that have been trading Bitcoin.
As reported, crypto analysts believed bitcoin’s next move could make or break its bull run, based on Fibonacci retracement levels. Daniel Moss, a strategist at DailyFX, wrote that the cryptocurrency market has been under fire, and said that if BTC fails to “ gain a firm foothold above last week’s close ($38,200) would probably open the door for sellers to drive prices back towards psychological support at $30,000.
Featured image via Pixabay.
Blockchain
Southeast Asia’s first Bitcoin fund launches to meet local institutional demand


The Malaysia-based BCMG Genesis Bitcoin Fund-I, or BGBF-I, has officially launched, claiming to have become the first insured institutional crypto product available in the Southeast Asian region.
An announcement states the fund launched in response to a growing demand for institutional crypto products in Southeast Asia. The fund leverages an Artificial Intelligence (AI) powered blockchain-based platform provided by Calfin Global Crypto Exchang, which purports to offer increased security for customer holdings.
BGBF-I is regulated in Labuan, Malaysia, where IBH Investment Bank serves as the fund’s main advisor. Professional financial services provider, Hong Kong-based Alpha Calibration, will provide regulatory compliance services, and be audited by HLB Hodgson.
The investment vehicle also offers insurance coverage and underwriting for Public Offering Security Insurance.Fund Manager, Subbu Vempati explained:
“BGBF-I is a secure, insured and regulated platform where investors can get exposure to the Digital Assets industry. Investors get to benefit from our expertise in the financial, technical, and security aspects of Bitcoin investments, as well as enter this class with a peace of mind without any challenges or risk in directly handling the Digital Asset.”
According to its official website, the BGBF-I Fund projects a minimum return of 12% per year, while noting that BTC itself has gained 266.5% over the past 12 months.
All accredited Asian investors must go through mandatory Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Know Your Customer (KYC) screenings to access the fund.
The Bitcoin fund is one of many that have been recently launched to address growing institutional appetites BTC and other digital assets. In mid-February, the first physically settled North American Bitcoin ETF was approved in Canada. Grayscale’s Bitcoin Trust also continues to grow, with its assets under management recently tagging $39.8 billion.
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Source: https://cointelegraph.com/news/southeast-asia-s-first-bitcoin-fund-launches-to-meet-local-institutional-demand
Blockchain
Former DC comic book artist fetches $1.85M auctioning Wonder Woman NFTs

José Delbo, an artist who illustrated the comic book series Wonder Woman during the late 1970s, has made $1.85 million in an auction selling non-fungible tokens, or NFTs, depicting the popular heroine.
The 87-year-old Argentian, who also worked on Batman, Transformers, and The Beatles‘ Yellow Submarine comic book, collaborated with Milan-based crypto art duo Hackatao to produce the NFT drop, dubbed “Heroines.”
In total, 914 individual NFTs were auctioned, with the tokens each featuring one of seven illustrations or animated gifs depicting Wonder Woman in scenes invoking themes relating to the empowerment of women.
The tokens auctioned included two one-of-a-kind editions, four “open limited editions” — where an unlimited amount of NFTs can be minted only while the auction is ongoing, and one edition for which no more than 10 copies could be sold.
The most expensive piece sold was “Heroines – Weight of the World,” an animated gif that illustrates Wonder Woman holding the world against a backdrop invoking themes of empowerment. The bidder “888” got their hands on the piece for a total of 88.888 Ether, worth approximately $136,000.

The open edition, “Heroines – Stand Out” , spanned 10 copies in total, with two being reserved for the artists, seven given away to raffle winners. The last remaining copy was auctioned for 15 Ether, or roughly $23,000. All proceeds from the sale were donated to Girls Who Code, an organization that works to closi the gender gap in the tech industry.
“Heroines – Shine Bright” was the highest performing open limited edition, with a total of 151 copies selling for a combined total of $450,000.
José Delbo illustrated the Wonder Woman comics between 1976-1981 and is no stranger to the crypto world, holding a week-long exhibition of his comic book art in the Ethereum-based virtual reality world Decentraland during July 2020.
Comic book characters are increasing in popularity in the crypto art markets, with Marvel officially launching a Spiderman NFT that sold for $25,000 in February of this year.
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Source: https://cointelegraph.com/news/former-dc-comic-book-artist-fetches-1-85m-auctioning-wonder-woman-nfts
Blockchain
TA: Bitcoin Rallies above $52K, Why BTC Could Soon Hit $55K

Bitcoin price rallied over 5% and it even broke the $52,000 resistance against the US Dollar. BTC is now above $53,000 and it is likely to continue higher towards $54,500 and $55,000.
- Bitcoin extended its rise above the $51,500 and $52,000 resistance levels.
- The price is now trading well above $52,000 and the 100 hourly simple moving average.
- There was a break above a key resistance trend line at $52,800 on the hourly chart of the BTC/USD pair (data feed from Kraken).
- The pair could correct a few points, but it is likely to find support near $52,800 and $52,000.
Bitcoin Price Extends Increase
Yesterday, we saw a fresh increase in bitcoin above the $50,000 resistance zone. BTC remained in a bullish zone and it was able to extend gains above $52,000 after a short-term downside correction.
The bulls gained strength, resulting in a strong push above $52,000. There was also a break above a key resistance trend line at $52,800 on the hourly chart of the BTC/USD pair. The pair cleared the 76.4% Fib retracement level of the key decline from the $52,748 swing high to $46,350 swing low.
Bitcoin is now trading well above $52,000 and the 100 hourly simple moving average. The price is trading nicely above the $53,000 level and it is likely to continue higher.
Source: BTCUSD on TradingView.com
An immediate resistance is near the $54,000 level. The first key resistance is near the $54,250 level. It is close to the 1.236 Fib extension level of the key decline from the $52,748 swing high to $46,350 swing low. The next major resistance for the bulls is near the $55,000 level. Any more gains could lead the price towards the $58,000 resistance zone and the all-time high.
Dips Supported in BTC?
If bitcoin starts a downside correction, it is likely to remain well bid above $52,000. An initial support on the downside is near the $53,000 level.
The first key support is near the $52,700 level and the broken trend line. Any more downsides might call for a test of the main $52,000 support zone in the coming sessions.
Technical indicators:
Hourly MACD – The MACD is now gaining momentum in the bullish zone.
Hourly RSI (Relative Strength Index) – The RSI for BTC/USD is now well above the 60 level.
Major Support Levels – $53,000, followed by $52,700.
Major Resistance Levels – $54,000, $54,250 and $55,000.
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Source: https://www.newsbtc.com/analysis/btc/bitcoin-btc-could-soon-hit-55k/
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