Bitcoin call options hit record as BTC nears $80,000

Bitcoin touched $79,989 on Monday as derivatives open interest swelled toward $58 billion, with traders paying record premiums for call options betting on a six-figure price.

"Bitcoin ETFs took just about $2b last week — their best week since the Good Ol Days of Oct 2025 as price went from $64k to $77k in a New York minute," Bloomberg senior ETF analyst Eric Balchunas said on X, pointing to relentless demand for U.S. spot bitcoin funds. "Anyway, this is one of the benefits of a commodity in a constant state of supply shock."

The leverage is showing up plainly in futures open interest, which tracks contracts still active rather than closed or settled. Coinglass bitcoin futures data tallied Monday shows exchange open interest racing toward $58 billion, a sharp rebound from roughly $49 billion only days earlier. Binance commands the largest slice among top derivatives platforms with 144,050 BTC, or about $11.51 billion, in open interest. CME follows at 125,950 BTC worth $10.07 billion, while MEXC holds $5.60 billion, Gate has $4.75 billion, and Bybit carries $4.64 billion.

Bitcoin is arriving at the $80,000 doorstep carrying considerably more derivatives firepower behind it. The next test is whether BTC can plant itself above $80,000, whether open interest keeps ballooning through upcoming expirations, and whether the call-buying stampede has another gear or finally runs out of fuel.

IBIT Call Volume Smashes Records

The options market is flashing the same aggressive hunger for upside. On X, the Kobeissi Letter stressed that traders have been hammering call options on BlackRock's IBIT, the largest U.S. spot bitcoin ETF. Calls give buyers the right to purchase an asset at a preset price and are commonly used to wager on rising prices.

IBIT call volume smashed a record 1.58 million contracts on Wednesday and stayed above 1 million contracts during each of the next two sessions. Call skew, a gauge of how expensive bullish options are against downside protection, jumped 0.05 in three days, its biggest three-day increase in at least two years. That distinction matters because traders are not merely betting that bitcoin's price climbs — they are paying increasingly rich premiums to get aboard. "Crypto bulls are back in full force," the Kobeissi Letter said.

Calls Seize Control Across Bitcoin Options

Broader bitcoin options data, according to Coinglass BTC options stats, confirms that bullish tilt. Calls represent 59.37% of options open interest, totaling 294,641.17 BTC, against 201,606.44 BTC in puts. During the past 24 hours, calls also captured 57.50% of options volume, compared with 42.50% for puts.

Total bitcoin options open interest has snapped sharply higher, climbing toward $39 billion after hovering around $25 billion earlier in August. The rebound drags the market back toward spring levels, when bitcoin options exposure routinely bounced between roughly $35 billion and $45 billion.

The biggest positions show exactly where bitcoin derivatives traders are planting their flags. Deribit's Sept. 25 $70,000 call leads open interest with 11,037.4 BTC, while the Dec. 25 $80,000 call carries another 8,749.3 BTC. Calls at $100,000 and $120,000 also sit among the exchange's largest outstanding positions — many traders still expect a six-figure bitcoin price.

Max Pain Looms as the Next Battleground

Expiration dates now matter more as that leverage piles higher. Deribit data places max pain, the price where the greatest amount of options would expire worthless, near $78,000 for Aug. 25 before sliding toward $70,000 for Aug. 28. Binance shows comparable levels around $78,000 and $70,000.

Heavy call buying can feed a rally because dealers selling those contracts may purchase IBIT shares or other bitcoin-linked exposure to hedge their risk. That buying can add another tailwind as bitcoin prices climb, but the machinery can reverse quickly if BTC retreats and traders unwind positions. With roughly $3 billion already liquidated from derivatives markets during the rally and the Fed's September rate decision looming, the leverage cuts both ways — a break above $80,000 could trigger fresh short squeezes, while a rejection risks a sharp unwind of the crowded call positioning.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.