Bitcoin open interest nears $30B; calls outnumber puts

On May 2, 2026, bitcoin derivatives open interest approached $30 billion as options and futures positions concentrated across major exchanges and bitcoin traded around $78,418 ahead of several May expiries.

Futures open interest was led by Binance with 134,620 BTC (about $10.55 billion), followed by CME at 117,320 BTC ($9.20 billion). MEXC reported 78,430 BTC ($6.15 billion), Gate held 68,860 BTC ($5.40 billion) and Bybit recorded 59,890 BTC ($4.70 billion). Futures open interest recovered after falling below $25 billion in late January and February when bitcoin traded under $70,000.

Exchange-level 24-hour changes on May 2 were mixed. CME posted the largest one-day increase in futures open interest at +6.16%. Kucoin showed a 4.32% gain, while BingX reported a 54.60% decline over the same period.

On the options side, call positions outnumbered puts. Aggregate call open interest totaled 241,222.88 BTC versus 169,755.09 BTC for puts, a split of about 58.69% to 41.31%. In 24-hour trading volume, puts accounted for 53.65% of activity and calls 46.35%.

Large options contracts were concentrated at near- and mid-term strikes. The largest single contract identified was a May 29, 2026 $80,000 call with 7,493.7 BTC in open interest. Other sizable call positions included a December 2026 $120,000 call at 6,600 BTC and a June 2026 $90,000 call with 6,362.7 BTC. The largest put position was a December 2026 $60,000 contract carrying 5,298.9 BTC of open interest.

Max pain calculations varied by exchange for upcoming expiries. One exchange’s near-term max pain for the May 3 expiry was about $78,000. Another exchange showed a May 29 level near $75,000 and a June 26 reading also near $75,000. A separate platform recorded a May 3 max pain nearer $65,000. The June 2026 expiry represented the largest notional on the platform with the $78,000 reading, at about $9 billion.

CME options open interest has contracted from late-2025 peaks. Total CME options OI approached 70,000 contracts in November 2025; current per-expiration cycles range roughly between 8,000 and 14,000 contracts. On CME, puts outpaced calls in USD terms through February and March 2026 before leveling, and call interest began to rebuild through April while remaining below late-2025 highs.

Futures and options open interest moved higher after the lows in late January and February, concurrent with bitcoin trading back above $78,000. Positions remain clustered at specific strikes and expiries as the market approaches multiple May settlement dates.