Bitcoin is back above $60,000 after a steep sell-off, while options traders are piling into crypto-linked names with sharply different bets.
Bitcoin’s move back above $60,000 has not calmed trading around the cryptocurrency complex, with options activity surging in several crypto-linked stocks and funds after a bruising sell-off.
The world’s largest cryptocurrency fell below $60,000 on Friday for the first time since October 2024 before recovering that level. Even after the rebound, bitcoin is down about 27% in 2026 and sits roughly 50% below its all-time high, according to the source report.
Traders have not abandoned the sector. The iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF, known by its ticker IBIT, ranked among the 20 most active options tickers by volume, while two of Monday’s 15 largest options trades by dollar value were tied to Strategy and Coinbase.
The trades pointed in different directions. In Strategy, the bitcoin treasury company associated with Michael Saylor, one trader sold 29,425 call diagonal spreads and collected about $56 million. The position involved selling Aug. 21 calls with a $125 strike and using the proceeds to buy June 18 calls with a $180 strike.
That structure is most profitable if Strategy shares fall and remain below $125 through the August expiration, allowing the trader to keep the upfront credit. Strategy’s recent sales of bitcoin, described in the source report as its first in years, have unsettled investors watching both the company and the broader crypto market.
Tom Lee, BitMine chairman and FundStrat head of research, struck a more constructive tone on bitcoin’s longer-term case. “In the face of the onslaught of AI narratives undermining trust of traditional systems, bitcoin remains the soundest money, and the resilience of its proof of work architecture has been demonstrated,” Lee said.
The more bullish large trade appeared in Coinbase. One trader sold 10,990 June 18 calls for $4.9 million while buying $26 million of Aug. 21 calls with a $160 strike. The trade generated immediate income from elevated option premiums while leaving the trader positioned for a longer-dated rebound in the exchange operator’s shares.
For the August Coinbase calls to turn profitable, the stock would need to rise above $183.40, about 13% higher than its level during Monday’s session. That makes the next stretch critical not only for bitcoin’s attempt to hold $60,000, but also for the equity trades now tied to whether confidence returns to the crypto market.
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