Bitcoin Holds $100K Support as $11.5B Options Expiry Triggers Market-Wide Selloff
The cryptocurrency market experienced significant turbulence over the past 24-48 hours, with major digital assets facing substantial selling pressure following a massive options expiry and ETF outflows.
The total cryptocurrency market capitalization declined from $3.33 trillion to $3.26 trillion, representing a -2.01% decrease in the past 24 hours.
Bitcoin dominance grew by 0.31% to 63.07% as altcoins suffered larger losses than the flagship cryptocurrency.
What Happened on May 29-30
Major Catalyst: $11.5B Options Expiry
The primary driver behind the overnight selloff was the expiration of approximately 92,500 Bitcoin options contracts with a notional value of roughly $10 billion on May 30.
This massive expiry created significant selling pressure as market makers unwound positions.
Bitcoin ETF Outflows
US spot Bitcoin ETFs experienced their first collective outflow in over two weeks on May 29, with $347 million withdrawn, ending a 10-day streak of net inflows.
The Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (FBTC) registered the largest outflow of $166 million, followed by Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) with $107.5 million.
Only BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) defied the trend with a $125 million net inflow, maintaining its 34th consecutive trading day of inflows.
Bitcoin Analysis
Price Action
Bitcoin dropped from an intraday high of $108,850 to briefly dip below $105,000 on May 29, representing a decline of more than 3.5%.
As of May 31 morning, BTC is trading at $103,647.44, down 1.79% in the last 24 hours.
Technical Analysis
Bitcoin has fallen below key psychological levels, with technical indicators reflecting a bearish shift in the short term.
The RSI on the daily chart sits around 72, indicating overbought conditions but sustained bullish momentum.
Despite the weakness, Bitcoin continues to hold above the critical $100,000 support zone.
On-Chain Metrics
Notably, Bitcoin recorded $1.52 billion worth of BTC withdrawn from exchanges in 24 hours, with Coinbase leading outflows of 9,012.51 BTC worth nearly $936 million.
This suggests holders are moving assets into private wallets rather than preparing to sell, potentially reducing selling pressure.
Ethereum Performance
Ethereum faced steeper declines, trading at $2,518.38, down 4% in 24 hours. ETH continues to consolidate beneath the key resistance level around $2,800, struggling to break higher after a strong rally earlier in May.
ETF Resilience
Despite Bitcoin’s struggles, Ethereum ETFs showed remarkable resilience.
Spot Ether ETFs posted a net inflow of $92 million on May 29, extending their inflow streak to ten consecutive trading days.
BlackRock’s ETHA recorded a single-day net inflow of $70.24 million on May 30.
Altcoin Performance Highlights
Extraordinary Gainers
- POKT: +1,186.33% – An exceptional surge likely driven by specific project developments
- LABUBU: +824.83% – Massive pump in this smaller cap token
- LPT (Livepeer): +56.58% – Significant gains for the decentralized video streaming protocol
- WCT: +15.83%
- CRO (Cronos): +13.04%
Notable Declines
- WIF: -18.63% – Meme coin severely impacted
- PEPE: -12% – Another meme coin suffering significant losses
- WLD (Worldcoin): -9.14%
- VIRTUAL: -9.82%
- DOGE: -7.42% – Major meme coin declining
- SOL (Solana): -5.35% to $154.52
Solana’s decline comes despite analysts noting it needs to cross $159 for a sustained bull market trend change.
Market Drivers and Analysis
Macroeconomic Factors
Several interconnected factors contributed to the market decline:
- Stalled US-China trade talks emerged as a primary catalyst
- Massive liquidations of $683.4 million in crypto futures, with long positions accounting for $617.85 million
- Technical breakdown as the total crypto market cap broke below the critical $3.35 trillion support level
Trading Volume and Sentiment
Total crypto trading volume decreased by 2.01% to $397.69 billion. Bitcoin trading volume surged 10% to $60 billion, suggesting active participation despite price declines.
Technical Outlook
Bitcoin’s Bull Score Index reached 80, indicating strong sentiment and increasing optimism.
The 50-day moving average crossed above the 200-day MA on May 25, forming a golden cross—a classic bullish signal.
However, short-term technical indicators suggest potential consolidation before the next major move.
The cryptocurrency market appears to be experiencing a healthy correction following significant gains, with institutional interest remaining strong despite short-term volatility.
The massive exchange outflows and continued ETF interest suggest underlying bullish sentiment persists even as prices consolidate.
Bitcoin Holds $100K Support as $11.5B Options Expiry Triggers Market-Wide Selloff
Live Market IntelligenceCrypto — Live Market Board
Rio Times · Live Market Intelligence
Crypto — Live Market Board
-0.26%
| Instrument | Last | Change | YoY | Prev. | High | Low | Volume |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BTC | 63,384 | -0.26% | -47.24% | 63,552 | 64,346 | 63,305 | 22,774,743,040 |
| ETH | 1,886 | +0.26% | -58.90% | 1,881 | 1,920 | 1,879 | 7,916,475,392 |
| SOL | 75.89 | -0.40% | -60.44% | 76.20 | 76.99 | 75.39 | 1,473,821,056 |
| XRP | 1.01 | -1.15% | -69.07% | 1.02 | 1.02 | 1.01 | 1,144,044,416 |
| BNB | 609.60 | -1.12% | -26.81% | 616.50 | 619.30 | 609.23 | 1,266,706,432 |
| ADA | 0.18 | -1.98% | -78.22% | 0.19 | 0.19 | 0.18 | 238,085,632 |
| DOGE | 0.07 | -1.56% | -70.00% | 0.07 | 0.07 | 0.07 | 553,256,192 |
| AVAX | 6.38 | +1.04% | -74.11% | 6.32 | 6.42 | 6.21 | 248,470,560 |
| LINK | 8.77 | -0.06% | -62.73% | 8.77 | 8.87 | 8.68 | 317,054,880 |
| DOT | 0.78 | -0.75% | -81.11% | 0.79 | 0.80 | 0.78 | 43,490,492 |
| LTC | 45.08 | -0.85% | -65.45% | 45.47 | 45.59 | 44.98 | 143,727,712 |
| BCH | 213.85 | +0.10% | -65.44% | 213.64 | 215.69 | 212.54 | 137,956,688 |
| TRX | 0.34 | +0.28% | -4.73% | 0.33 | 0.34 | 0.33 | 436,576,064 |
| XLM | 0.16 | -1.33% | -64.46% | 0.16 | 0.16 | 0.16 | 89,559,864 |
| HBAR | 0.07 | -0.53% | -74.67% | 0.07 | 0.07 | 0.07 | 22,546,186 |
| NEAR | 1.65 | +2.42% | -40.55% | 1.62 | 1.68 | 1.61 | 187,591,264 |
| ATOM | 1.40 | -2.36% | -70.15% | 1.44 | 1.44 | 1.40 | 18,626,964 |
| AAVE | 89.06 | +0.93% | -72.33% | 88.24 | 90.20 | 88.19 | 129,099,704 |
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief
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