Session Context: Asia-to-London Transition

Options markets are pricing in tight ranges ahead of the nearest expiry on 2026-07-27, now one day away. Spot $BTC sits at $64,707 against a max pain strike of $65,000, while $ETH trades at $1,881 against max pain of $1,875. Both assets remain within 1-2% of their pain points, a setup that typically attracts late-session gamma pinning or flush-out moves as expiry approaches.

Total open interest remains substantial: $BTC has 2360.7 OI on the front contract, while $ETH shows 12966 OI. These sizes suggest meaningful dealer hedging and institutional positioning tied to the overnight session flow.

Put/Call Ratio and Call-Side Bias

The options market is heavily skewed toward call buying. $BTC's put/call ratio stands at 0.4293 as of 2026-07-26T01:00:23.597Z, categorized as Extreme Greed. This reflects 305,453 calls OI against 131,131.8 puts OI - a roughly 2.3:1 call-to-put imbalance. The data suggests traders are hedging downside risk lightly while maintaining long exposure above spot.

$ETH shows a similar but slightly less extreme pattern: PCR 0.4965 (still Extreme Greed territory) with 1,142,715 calls OI versus 567,382 puts OI. This 2:1 call advantage indicates similar sentiment - conviction in upside, minimal put hedging. When puts are this thin relative to calls, any sharp move down can flush out leveraged longs and trigger cascading liquidations as gamma-hedge positions unwind.

Skew and Dealer Gamma Structure

The 25-delta skew paints a nuanced picture. $BTC's skew sits at 4.76 on the 33-day tenor (2026-08-28 expiry), indicating put skew - meaning out-of-the-money puts are bid more aggressively than OTM calls. This is the classic signature of downside protection demand, even as current PCR suggests call enthusiasm. Traders are locking in insurance for a wider move.

$ETH's skew is flatter at 1.55, suggesting puts and calls are roughly balanced in premium terms. This indicates less acute demand for downside hedging, consistent with its slightly higher PCR.