With bitcoin and the broader crypto market showing signs of life, the defensive positioning in the market has eased, not disappeared, a sign of continued caution.
This is evident in the BTC and ether (ETH) options markets listed on Deribit, where put options, derivative contracts that offer protection against price declines, continue to trade at a premium to calls or bullish contracts.
Bitcoin’s one-week, 25-delta put-call skew, which measures the difference in volatility for puts versus calls, was about 16%. It showed that it exceeds demand with a premium of 16% vol.points. That’s still remarkably elevated, though significantly lower than the 25% 10 days ago, according to data source Velo.
One-, three-, and six-month skews also show put premiums of around 10% or more. The same applies to ether.
The message is clear. Downside fears persist, keeping demand for insurance against price declines intact, although BTC’s long-term owners and ETF investors appear to have returned to accumulation.
