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Bitcoin derivatives markets sent mixed signals on Saturday as overall open interest climbed back toward $30 billion, while the spot price held near $78,418 ahead of the May 3 options expiry.
According to coinglass.com data, total BTC options open interest was roughly $30 billion as of May 2, 2026. The figure represented a recovery from late January and February lows, when open interest fell below $25 billion alongside a drop in bitcoin to under $70,000.
Futures open interest showed a similar pattern, with exchange-level figures highlighting concentration among major venues. Binance led with 134,620 BTC in futures open interest, valued at $10.55 billion. CME followed with 117,320 BTC ($9.20 billion). Gate reported 68,860 BTC ($5.40 billion), while MEXC logged 78,430 BTC ($6.15 billion). Bybit recorded 59,890 BTC ($4.70 billion).
CME also stood out on momentum, posting the strongest 24-hour change in futures open interest at plus 6.16% on May 2. Most other exchanges recorded mild declines over the same period, while BingX was a notable outlier with a 54.60% drop in 24-hour open interest. Kucoin bucked the trend with a 4.32% gain.
On the options side, calls held the edge in open interest. Total call open interest was 241,222.88 BTC versus 169,755.09 BTC for puts, implying a call-to-put ratio of about 58.69% to 41.31%.
In 24-hour trading activity, puts led by volume at 53.65% compared with calls at 46.35%, suggesting near-term hedging demand even as call positioning remained larger in open interest.
Deribit’s most open interest options contract was a 29MAY26 $80,000 call, holding 7,493.7 BTC in open positions—the largest single options contract across all venues cited. The next largest positions included a December 2026 call at the $120,000 strike with 6,600 BTC in open interest, followed by a June 2026 call at the $90,000 strike with 6,362.7 BTC.
On the bearish side, the largest put contract was a December 2026 position paying out at a $60,000 level, with 5,298.9 BTC in open interest.
Max pain levels varied by exchange ahead of the May 3 expiry. Deribit’s max pain was near $78,000, with longer-dated expirations showing a downward curve toward $69,000 and below for the March 2027 contract. The June 2026 expiry showed the largest notional value on Deribit at roughly $9 billion.
Binance’s max pain profile differed: the May 29 expiry was near $75,000, and the June 26 contract was also approximately $75,000. The September 25 expiry pushed toward $84,000 before the curve dropped again.
OKX’s max pain for May 3 was reported near $65,000, described as one of the more bearish near-term readings across exchanges. The March 2027 contract on OKX showed a sharp increase in notional value, with max pain climbing back toward $78,000.
With bitcoin trading at $78,418, it was above the near-term max pain levels on Binance and OKX, while sitting essentially on top of Deribit’s max pain reading. The article noted that options dealers managing exposure near expiry could influence price action through the weekend.
Separately, the Crypto Fear and Greed Index was reported at 39, indicating “Fear,” with the index showing 26▲ 13 versus yesterday, 33▲ 6 versus last week, and 9▲ 30 versus last month.
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