Crypto markets continued to retreat ahead of this week’s record options expiry, with defensive positioning and thinning liquidity reinforcing a cautious tone heading into 2026.
Bitcoin (BTC) and other major digital assets declined steadily through Monday’s U.S. session. BTC slipped below $88,000 after earlier pushing above $90,000, while ether (ETH) fell back under the $3,000 threshold.
Some crypto-related equities held onto gains despite the broader pullback. Hut 8 (HUT) led the group, climbing 16% as it extended last week’s rally following its 15-year AI data center lease agreement with Fluidstack. The stock was further supported by a price target increase from Benchmark analyst Mark Palmer. Coinbase (COIN) and Robinhood (HOOD) also traded higher, though both eased from session highs as crypto prices weakened. Strategy (MSTR) reversed an earlier 3% advance to trade modestly lower by late afternoon.
Record Deribit expiry approaches
The volatile trading range between $85,000 and $90,000 comes ahead of Friday’s record $28.5 billion expiration of bitcoin and ether options on Deribit. The expiring contracts represent more than half of Deribit’s $52.2 billion in total open interest, according to Jean-David Pequignot, the exchange’s chief commercial officer.
“This year-end expiry caps a year marked by increasing institutional participation and a transition from speculative cycles toward a policy-driven supercycle,” Pequignot said.
At the center of the expiry sits bitcoin’s $96,000 “max pain” level, where option sellers stand to benefit most. Roughly $1.2 billion in open interest is clustered at the $85,000 put strike, which could pressure spot prices if downside momentum builds. While mid-term call spreads targeting $100,000 to $125,000 remain popular, short-dated protective puts have become more expensive, he added.
Although the skew between call and put pricing has eased from recent extremes, it continues to signal caution. Traders appear to be rolling hedges forward rather than closing them, shifting exposure from December $85,000–$70,000 puts into January $80,000–$75,000 put spreads—suggesting concerns extend beyond the year-end horizon
