Traders bet that Bitcoin will surpass US$ 100,000 still in January

Source: PortaldoBitcoin Original Title: Traders bet that Bitcoin will surpass US$ 100,000 still in January Original Link: If the end of 2025 was marked by chaos and fear in the cryptocurrency market, 2026 begins with optimism as investors signal they expect Bitcoin to return to surpass the US$ 100,000 mark.

Since Friday, there has been a notable increase in investor interest in (call) options with a strike price of US$ 100,000 and expiration in January, according to data from Deribit, the world’s largest cryptocurrency options exchange by volume and open positions.

A call option gives the buyer the right, but not the obligation, to purchase the underlying asset at a predetermined price on a future date. The US$ 100,000 call option represents a bet that Bitcoin’s price will rise above this level before the contract’s expiration.

“The flow continues to be dominated by rollovers, with a noticeable increase in interest around the US$ 100,000 call options expiring on January 30,” said Jasper De Maere, strategist at Wintermute.

In just the last 24 hours, the number of active or open contracts for this specific option increased by 420 BTC, according to Amberdata. This equates to an open interest growth of US$ 38.80 million, the highest among all January-expiring call options and across all expirations on the Deribit platform, where one options contract represents one BTC.

The option recently showed a total open interest of US$ 1.45 billion, with January’s expiration accounting for US$ 828 million, according to Deribit Metrics.

The US$ 94,000 momentum

Demand for these calls could increase even further if Bitcoin’s price appreciation extends beyond US$ 94,000.

“The funding for BTC perpetual contracts on Deribit jumped over 30%, signaling that traders are now short in the upside range. This dynamic became evident when the spot price surpassed US$ 90,000, triggering hedge flows into perpetual contracts and near-expiry call options,” said QCP Capital analysts last week.

This Monday (5), QCP added to their analysis, stating that “the positioning [of traders] has become increasingly constructive, with a reduction in put option asymmetry across all maturities and more than 3,000 call options expiring on January 30, 2026, with a strike price of US$ 100,000 purchased since last week.”

BTC has already risen more than 5% at the start of this year, reaching over US$ 93,000 on Sunday night before losing momentum and trading around US$ 92,700 this Monday.