The OCC approved options trading for the Bitcoin ETF, and this new market is surging. In one day, BlackRock’s IBIT ETF saw over $425 million in options trades.
Traders have been overwhelmingly bullish in their predictions, with over $6 million in bets that Bitcoin’s value will double in one month.
BlackRock’s Bitcoin ETF Options
Since the OCC approved options trading for the Bitcoin ETF, this new investment opportunity has been booming. For example, Grayscale already filed for a new covered call, Bitcoin ETF. According to Bloomberg ETF analyst Eric Balchunas, however, the biggest winner has been BlackRock’s IBIT.
“A few hundred million so far in options volume on IBIT (a ton for Day One). Here’s a rank of the contracts by volume, it’s almost all calls. Seems very bullish, especially the December 20 C100, which is basically betting price of BTC will double in the next month,” said Balchunas.
BlackRock Bitcoin ETF Options Day 1 Inflows. Source: Eric BalchunasThese Bitcoin options trades total well over $425 million and counting, with inflows still coming in. These figures are very impressive on their own, but Balchunas further noted that the Put Call ratio is .17. This represents the ratio of bearish to bullish predictions, and signifies that these traders are betting overwhelmingly in favor of Bitcoin’s rise.
By the mid-afternoon, IBIT’s total trade volume crossed the $3 billion threshold. Even one week prior, $1 billion was called a strong showing.
These options trades have turbocharged the leading Bitcoin ETF, and other issuers like Grayscale have barely entered the market.
Meanwhile, the spot Bitcoin ETFs are also making a stride. According to data from Farside Investors, on Tuesday, the Bitcoin ETFs recorded an inflow of $816.4 million as BTC hit a new all-time high.
These massive new inflows have only facilitated BlackRock’s continued Bitcoin investment. According to data from ETF analyst Shaun Edmondson, the US issuers collectively purchased over 2,800 BTC since Monday.
BlackRock alone purchased more than 1,000 BTC. Moreover, ETF issuers now hold over 5% of the total Bitcoin supply.
