Bitcoin Holds $77,000 at Midday as IBIT Options Skew Call-Heavy; SOL Funding Diverges

Bitcoin traded at $77,467 by midday Wednesday, up 0.83% over 24 hours, with IBIT options posting a put/call volume ratio of 0.67 — a call-tilted reading that points to dealers positioning for upside rather than hedging downside. Ether held $2,138 and Solana led majors with a 2.05% gain, though SOL perpetual funding turned negative in a divergence from spot strength.

Market Pulse

BTC traded $77,467 at midday, holding the $77,000 handle after an intraday range of 1.46%. ETH changed hands at $2,138, up 1.25% with a 1.89% session range. SOL outperformed at $86.00 (+2.05%), and XRP added 1.01% to $1.375. Binance perpetual funding stayed positive but modest on BTC (+8.2% annualized), ETH (+6.3%), and XRP (+6.4%). SOL is the outlier — funding logged -7.3% annualized despite the 2% spot gain, a configuration consistent with short interest building against the rally rather than long crowding.

Options Positioning

IBIT options skewed call-heavy on the day, with P/C volume at 0.674 and P/C open interest at 0.717. Top call OI concentrates at the $50, $70, and $55 strikes against an underlying of $43.48 — out-of-the-money call structure consistent with directional positioning, not hedging. FBTC echoes the pattern: P/C volume 0.667, with the $100 strike showing the largest call OI (10,061 contracts). ETHA P/C volume printed 0.697 with IV30d at 49.8%, the highest among the major BTC/ETH products. ETHE diverged sharply — P/C volume of 1.399 marks a defensive intraday tilt, though P/C OI of 0.290 suggests the standing book remains call-heavy. BSOL also ran put-heavy on volume (1.311), aligning with the negative SOL funding signal.

Narrative

Tape drivers skew regulatory and structural. A Trump executive order directing a review of fintech rules drew attention from XRP and exchange-adjacent names, while South Carolina passed legislation banning a state CBDC and codifying protections for miners and self-custody. Separately, InflowScan data shows the newly listed Hyperliquid ETFs absorbed $22.3M in early inflows — a small absolute figure but a data point on appetite for thinner-liquidity crypto products. Truth Social withdrew its bitcoin ETF filing, removing one supply-side overhang on the issuer pipeline.

Afternoon Watch

SOL funding/spot divergence — a sustained move with funding still negative has historically been associated with short-covering episodes rather than fresh trend extension.
IBIT and FBTC call-OI concentration at $50 and $100 strikes respectively — afternoon dealer flow into those levels worth tracking on the tape.
USDT supply printed a -$59.8M 24h change against USDC's +$5.4M; the next refresh will signal whether stablecoin staging is rebuilding or drawing down further into the close.