Ethereum Price Today: $2,640
- Ethereum options worth $1.64 billion on Deribit are set to expire in the next 24 hours, with 95% of puts potentially expiring worthless.
- Recent increasing selling pressure could cause call options with strike prices at $2,700 and above to expire worthless.
- ETH bulls are bowing to resistance at $2,750 again amid mixed signals emerging from daily chart technical indicators.
Ethereum (ETH) is trading around $2,640 on Thursday, with volatility expected due to an upcoming expiration of $1.64 billion in ETH options on the Deribit exchange. The leading altcoin could see over 95% of put options expire worthless if prices remain at current levels.
Ethereum Options Set for Major Expiration with Puts Under Pressure
Ethereum’s open interest (OI) on Deribit—the largest options exchange, representing over 70% of the global cryptocurrency options volume—increased by over 130% in May to a record $6.3 billion, signaling strong investor interest in the leading altcoin. Data indicates that most of these contracts are concentrated at the $3,000 strike price, reflecting increased bullish sentiment among investors.
Cryptocurrency options are financial agreements that give investors the right, but not the obligation, to buy or sell cryptocurrencies at predetermined prices.
Call options dominate the May 30 expiration, valued at $897.8 million, compared to puts worth $746.6 million. Over 95% of these puts at the $2,600 strike price and below will expire worthless if ETH maintains its current price. The large volume of calls at the $2,700 strike price and above also risks expiring without value.
The $2,700 price level is key to watch before the May 30 expiration at 08:00 AM UTC. With prices nearing the $2,700 strike price, a push by the bulls above this level could bring another $50 million in calls into profitability.
However, increasing selling activity in the spot market could prevent such a scenario, as investors reduce risk following the recent price increase from $2,500 to over $2,700. Selling pressure is visible on global exchanges, which have recorded three consecutive days of net ETH exchange flows totaling 254,700 ETH on Thursday. Net exchange flows indicate that selling volume exceeds buying pressure.
Ethereum Price Forecast: ETH Fails to Sustain Move Above $2,750 Resistance Amid Mixed Signals in Technical Indicators
Ethereum experienced $112.96 million in futures liquidations in the last 24 hours, according to data. The total amount of long and short positions liquidated is $59.94 million and $53.03 million, respectively.
ETH briefly surged above the $2,750 resistance on Thursday, the first time since February 24. However, historical selling pressure between the $2,750 and $2,850 range pushed it back below the 200-day Simple Moving Average (SMA) resistance.
If bulls can maintain a firm move above the key range between $2,750 and $2,850 and hold it as support, ETH will validate an ascending triangle pattern. This could see its price surpass the psychological level of $3,000 to test the $3,250 resistance. The target is obtained by measuring the height of the triangle and projecting it upwards from the breakout point.
The likelihood of such a move is strengthened by an imminent golden cross, where the 50-day SMA is about to cross above the 100-day SMA. This indicates that short-term bullish momentum is outpacing long-term momentum.
On the downside, ETH could find support near the ascending trendline of the triangle, which is reinforced by the 14-day Exponential Moving Average (EMA).
The Relative Strength Index (RSI) is above its neutral level but is currently trending slightly downward. Meanwhile, the Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) indicator shows red histogram bars. The momentum indicators signal a weakening of bullish sentiment.
Stay ahead of the curve in the fast-paced crypto world – explore the latest updates and trends at Cryptonewsfeeds.com.
