IBIT options trading volume surges to $446M in opening hours, $1.6B by mid-day

Options trading for BlackRock’s exchange-traded fund (ETF), iShares Bitcoin Trust ETF (IBIT), started on Nov. 19 at Nasdaq and has already moved over $446 million in its first trading hours.

Bloomberg senior ETF analyst Eric Balchunas remarked that the volume is “a ton” for a first day, with nearly 98% of trading contracts being calls. He added:

“Seems very bullish, esp the Dec20th C100, which is basically betting price of btc [Bitcoin] will double in the next month.”

A “call” in an option contract gives the right to purchase a security at a predetermined price, known as the strike price, within a specific period, called the expiration date.

IBIT’s spot trading volume reached $1.6 billion as of press time, based on Barchart data.

More to come

The addition of options trading to IBIT came quickly following the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency’s (OCC) Nov. 18 memo that stated it was “preparing for the clearance, settlement, and risk management.”

The approval gives the green light for options trading for IBIT and other spot Bitcoin ETFs, as pointed out by Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart, who expects more listing of these products this week.

Bitwise CEO Hunter Horsley expects options trading on the firm’s BITB to start on Nov. 20.