Bitcoin's options market is showing signs of shifting sentiment as traders unwind defensive positions. The put/call ratio has dropped sharply to approximately 0.52, down from 0.76 in late June, signaling a clear move away from bearish bets and a growing appetite for upside exposure. A put/call ratio below 1.0 indicates more call (bullish) options open interest than put (bearish) options, and the current level near 0.52 marks one of the more bullish readings in recent months.

Options Skew Trends

The 25-delta skew has declined notably at the front end of the curve. The one-week (1W) skew has fallen to around 4%, while longer-dated contracts in the 3-to-6-month (3M–6M) range remain elevated at approximately 11–12%. The 25-delta skew measures the difference in implied volatility between puts and calls of equivalent delta, making it a widely followed gauge of relative demand for downside versus upside protection. This pattern suggests that while near-term downside hedging is being unwound, market participants continue to hold a defensive premium on longer-dated options, reflecting caution about more distant risks.

25-delta skew has fallen sharply at the front end, with 1W dropping near 4%, while 3M–6M remain around 11–12%. Near-term downside hedging is unwinding, but longer-dated options retain a defensive premium. pic.twitter.com/Lv9oowJ2ud
— glassnode (@glassnode) July 24, 2026

Implied Volatility Stays Compressed

Implied volatility across Bitcoin's options curve remains subdued. At-the-money (ATM) implied volatility for one-week contracts sits at 34.3%, compared with 40.8% for six-month contracts. The upward-sloping term structure indicates that the market is discounting near-term event risk while assigning a modest premium to longer-dated uncertainty. Compressed near-term implied volatility can signal that options traders are pricing in a lower probability of sharp short-term price swings, a condition that has historically preceded periods of consolidation or low realized volatility.

$BTC ATM implied volatility remains compressed across the curve, with 1W at 34.3% versus 6M at 40.8%. The upward-sloping term structure shows near-term event risk is being discounted, while longer-dated uncertainty retains a modest premium. pic.twitter.com/e0TyEL29Eh
— glassnode (@glassnode) July 24, 2026

Market Context

Bitcoin is trading near $64,280 at the time of reporting. The unwinding of defensive options positioning comes while broader market sentiment remains in "Fear" territory, according to widely used sentiment indicators. This divergence — improving options positioning alongside lingering fear in broader sentiment gauges — highlights how derivatives markets and retail-facing sentiment indicators can send differing signals about market structure. The elevated skew on longer-dated contracts, meanwhile, underscores that uncertainty about the broader outlook persists even as near-term positioning turns more constructive. Traders and analysts typically monitor whether the front-end skew continues to normalize and whether implied volatility begins to re-rate as signals that conviction is returning to the market.

Data source: Glassnode, via DailyCoin