Silvergate Shutdown Sparks Crypto Investor Anxiety
Crypto-friendly bank Silvergate’s decision to wind down operations amid a worsening macroeconomic picture has caused concern among digital-asset investors, leading to a surge in demand for derivatives that protect against price slides in major tokens.
Bearish Bias in Bitcoin Options Market
At press time, the 30-day bitcoin skew shows the strongest bias for bearish put options in over two months. This indicates that investors are worried about a deeper slide in the bitcoin price and are buying put options to hedge their long spot or futures positions or are looking to profit from potential bearish price action.
Market Depth Deterioration in US Dollar Trading Pairs
The renewed bias for put options appears justified as the market depth for US dollar trading pairs has deteriorated amid the bitcoin price slide. This means that a small sell order can lead to an outsized price drop. Depth refers to the ability of the market to absorb large buy and sell orders at stable prices.
Source: CoinDesk