Bitcoin ETF options trading in the U.S. is expected to start today. Options on BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) ETF cleared the last regulatory hurdle on Monday, and they could bring more institutional appetite for the largest cryptocurrency. “This marks a monumental shift,” 10x Research said in a Tuesday newsletter. The products “could attract significant trading volumes, potentially driving sharp price rallies in bitcoin,” it said. For example, MicroStrategy (MSTR), the Nasdaq-listed company that owns the largest corporate BTC treasury in the world, is punching above its weight due to the booming market in its share options. MSTR options open interest surpasses the firm’s market capitalization, while the stock’s trading volume levels with Apple’s and Microsoft’s, companies with around a 40-times larger market value. A similar explosion in open interest and trading volume could happen with BTC, which could be accelerated due to bitcoin’s supply limit, 10x Research noted.
