According to data provided by Coinglass, Ethereum options open interest recently surpassed the $8 billion milestone. For comparison, Bitcoin options open interest currently stands at $5.3 billion.
The widely followed technical metric refers to the number of active contracts that are yet to be settled. Open interest decreases as soon as traders close out their positions.
The aforementioned metric is frequently tracked by traders in order to determine the direction of the market. If more traders join the market, it means that a certain market trend probably has legs.
In early August, Ethereum surpassed Bitcoin in the options market for the first time ever.
Deribit, the largest cryptocurrency options trading platform, recently took note of the “flippening” in a recent tweet. “We like the merge!” the company tweeted.
Ethereum’s upcoming transition to the proof-of-stake consensus algorithm has been touted as the key bullish catalyst for the second-largest cryptocurrency as well as the broader cryptocurrency market. The Ethereum spot market saw growing activity in recent weeks, with the price of the Bitcoin competitor soaring above the $1,900 level.
With Ethereum appearing in the spotlight once again, it is natural that options traders want to get a piece of the action.
The merge, which is arguably the most anticipated crypto-related event of 2022, is expected to happen on Sept. 15. The upgrade could end up being slightly delayed due to possible technical issues that could arise during the final stretch of testing.
