$2 Billion in Crypto Options Expiring Friday Amid Market Cautiousness

A total of approximately 16,500 Bitcoin options contracts, valued at around $1.6 billion, are set to expire this Friday, February 21.

This week's expiration event is comparatively smaller than the previous one and stands as one of the smallest this year, suggesting minimal impact on the spot markets, which have hovered within a narrow range this week.

The current batch of Bitcoin options exhibits a put/call ratio of 0.75, indicating a slight dominance of call (long) contracts over puts (shorts) set to expire.

Funding rates for Bitcoin and Ethereum remain close to zero, following a strong negative spike for Ether earlier this month, with Ethereum's volatility maintaining a higher premium than Bitcoin.