Bitcoin options tied to BlackRock’s IBIT are now Wall Street’s favorite

BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT) exchange-traded fund has overtaken Deribit as the largest venue for bitcoin (BTC) options in an indication of how accreditation and institutional capital is reshaping crypto derivatives trading.

Open interest in IBIT contracts hit nearly $38 billion after Friday’s expiry, versus $32 billion on Deribit, which had dominated the market since 2016. The flip comes less than a year after IBIT options went live in November.

IBIT, already the world’s largest spot Bitcoin ETF, with $84 billion in assets, has quickly become a magnet for institutional flows. Its growth cycle is reinforcing liquidity and legitimacy, pulling activity into regulated markets that once sat firmly offshore.

Deribit — bought by Coinbase for $2.9 billion in August — remains favored by crypto-native traders. But IBIT’s surge signals a structural power shift as options once driven by high-leverage offshore venues are increasingly anchored in the U.S.

Meanwhile, Checkonchain data shows IBIT ETF’s leverage ratio has reached 45%, near all-time highs.

The ETF holds 770,000 BTC, while options open interest stands at 340,000 BTC, meaning nearly half of IBIT’s underlying exposure is mirrored in derivatives. This highlights the scale of speculative positioning tied to the ETF, though it is debatable whether this fully reflects market leverage.

IBIT now accounts for 45% of global BTC options open interest dominance, overtaking Deribit at 41.9%, with CME at just 6% and other exchanges making up the rest.

This concentration indicates that IBIT and Deribit together command almost 90% of the BTC options market.

The data suggests two takeaways: IBIT’s growing role in derivatives trading is reshaping the market, and institutional platforms like CME remain small when compared with ETF-driven and retail-dominated venues.