Crypto derivatives like options and futures have experienced a significant surge in trading volumes this week, reaching record highs on various exchanges. Deribit, a popular crypto derivatives exchange, announced on February 29 that its 24-hour trading volume had reached an all-time high of $12.4 billion. The platform also reported a record-breaking open interest of over $29 billion and client assets totaling $4 billion.
Coinbase Institutional, a regulated futures exchange in the United States, had its second-best day on March 1, with $380 million in notional volume traded in Bitcoin and Ether contracts. This was achieved across 850 unique end-users. Additionally, the Greeks Live options trader’s tooling platform witnessed a historic 24-hour high options trading volume of $620 million.
The rise in spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the US drove the spot bull market, resulting in record volumes as Bitcoin’s price soared to $64,000. However, the options volume positions are only experiencing a modest increase. Despite this, the market structure remains healthy due to solid inflows.
Deribit disclosed that approximately 32,000 BTC options, with a notional value of $1.9 billion, are set to expire on March 1. Furthermore, around 235,000 ETH options contracts, valued at $793 million, will also expire on the same day.
Spot Bitcoin ETFs also had a strong week, with multiple days of record trading volumes exceeding $2 billion. However, Grayscale’s ETF experienced an outflow of nearly $600 million on February 29, causing the net inflow for all ten ETFs to drop to $93.8 million. This is the lowest level since February 6, according to preliminary data from Farside Investors. On the other hand, BlackRock’s Bitcoin fund saw net inflows of $604 million on February 29, surpassing Grayscale’s net outflows and outperforming all other ETFs combined in terms of daily inflows.
In summary, the crypto derivatives market has seen a significant increase in trading volumes this week, with exchanges like Deribit and Coinbase Institutional reporting record-breaking figures. The rise of spot Bitcoin ETFs has led to a strong bull market, although options volume positions have only experienced slight growth. Despite this, the market remains robust, supported by solid inflows.