Crypto Markets Unfazed by Asia Holidays, Traders Bet Big on Bitcoin Reaching $100,000

Despite public holidays in major Asian markets, the crypto landscape remained relatively muted, with Bitcoin and Ether posting modest gains. However, the real story lies in the bullish bets being placed on Bitcoin reaching the $100,000 milestone, as traders lock in nearly $1 billion in call options on the Deribit exchange.

Crypto Traders Wager on Bitcoin's Meteoric Rise

Muted Asian Trading, but Bullish Sentiment Prevails

The first half of the Asia trading day saw relatively muted activity in the crypto markets, owing to public holidays in China, Hong Kong, and South Korea. Bitcoin traded around $63,900, a modest increase of 0.5% in the last 24 hours, while Ether rose just over 1% to $2,635. The broader digital asset market, as measured by the CoinDesk 20 Index, gained 0.2%. The temporary lull in trading can be attributed to the national holidays in China and Hong Kong, known as Golden Week, as well as the Armed Forces Day holiday in South Korea.Despite the subdued market activity, the underlying sentiment remains bullish. Traders have locked in almost $1 billion in call options contracts on the Deribit exchange, betting on Bitcoin reaching the $100,000 mark. The open interest for the $100,000 strike price is the highest among all other BTC options listed on the exchange, according to data from Deribit Metrics. The second most popular option is the $70,000 call, with an open interest of over $800 million.

Crypto Outperforming Traditional Markets

The digital assets sector has continued to outperform the stock market this year, with Bitcoin leading the charge. According to Canaccord, the world's largest cryptocurrency finished the last quarter up around 140% year-on-year, outpacing Ether's 60% gain and the S&P 500's almost 30% rise over the same period.Analysts at Canaccord believe that if Bitcoin follows historical patterns, it could be poised for a rally in the coming months. Typically, Bitcoin tends to rally 6-12 months following a halving event, and then reach new highs 2-6 months later. With the most recent halving occurring in May 2020, the analysts suggest that a potential rally could start between now and April 2023.While Bitcoin is still reacting positively to the "lower-rate environment," the analysts note that it is still performing like other risk assets for the time being. This means that the cryptocurrency's price movements are closely tied to broader market sentiment and macroeconomic factors, rather than being entirely decoupled from traditional financial markets.

Blockchain Activity Remains Subdued

The chart of the day highlights the dollar value of the total transfer volume over the Bitcoin blockchain since 2015. The data shows that the level of economic activity remains depressed relative to previous bull market peaks. This suggests that the current market rally may not yet be fully supported by a corresponding increase in on-chain activity, which could be a potential concern for long-term sustainability.Nonetheless, the bullish sentiment and the continued outperformance of the crypto sector compared to traditional markets indicate that the digital asset ecosystem is still attracting significant investor interest and capital inflows. As the market navigates the current landscape, the focus will be on whether the bullish bets on Bitcoin's ascent to $100,000 will come to fruition and whether the underlying blockchain activity can catch up to the price appreciation.