About 25,000 Bitcoin options contracts are due to expire on Friday, May 15, carrying roughly $2 billion in notional value, an event described as too small to meaningfully sway spot markets. The batch features a 0.55 put/call ratio and a max-pain level near $80,000, while total crypto market cap sits at $2.77 trillion after a mid-week dip tied to the U.S. inflation report.

Bitcoin (BTC) has successfully reclaimed the spotlight in the global financial landscape, surging 2.45% over the last 24 hours to trade near $81,200. The rally, which briefly touched an intraday high of $82,007, comes on the heels of a landmark regulatory milestone in Washington and a massive signal of institutional conviction from Wall Street’s largest bank.

Bitcoin has traded in a tight $79,000–$81,000 range in recent weeks, with its market capitalization at $1.59 trillion. Long-term holder supply momentum has surged into the top 1% of readings since 2017, while multiple indicators show limited LTH selling and relative unrealized losses peaking at 15%.

Bitcoin dropped below $80,000 after failing to hold recovery moves above $82,000 seen on Sunday and Monday, and the selloff accelerated on Wednesday with a brief dip under $79,000. The price later hovered around $79,600, roughly 3.3% below the Sunday high. The pullback coincided with the Bitcoin Coinbase Premium Gap moving into negative territory, pointing to relatively heavier selling pressure on Coinbase.

Strive Inc. (Nasdaq: ASST) said its bitcoin holdings rose to 15,009 BTC as of May 12, after additional purchases and the Semler Scientific merger, and it reported having no short- or long-term debt outstanding. In an SEC filing dated May 14, the company reported $929.4 million of digital assets as of March 31, quarterly revenue of $2.76 million, and a net loss of $265.9 million driven largely by fair-value unrealized losses on digital assets.

Bitcoin slipped back below $80,000 over the past 24 hours, adding focus to a quarterly technical view that highlights lower decision levels. The analysis maps resistance at $80,600–$82,500 and suggests $65,000 could become a critical area if that band continues to cap the move. At the time of writing, BTC was $79,820, down 1.8% in 24 hours.

Bitcoin futures open interest across exchanges rose to $61.9 billion on May 14, with BTC trading around $81,500 at 3 p.m. ET. Options positioning shows "max pain" levels clustering around $78,000–$81,000 for near-term expirations, while Deribit's June 26 expiry carries $14.52 billion in notional value. Data also indicate differing behavior across venues, with call volume leading on Deribit and OKX while CME's options open interest is more put-heavy.

Bitcoin has dropped under $80,000 after a roughly 37% rebound from earlier lows ran into resistance near the 200-day moving average around $82,400. XWIN Research Japan highlights on-chain signals such as a 17.7% unrealized profit margin and a May 4 realized-profit spike of 14,600 BTC, while noting spot demand contraction has eased from -91,000 BTC in April to about -11,000 BTC.