derivatives

Before the release of the US CPI data, the volatility of BTC and ETH has weakened. Derivatives indicators show a marginal improvement in market sentiment. Although leverage levels have been significantly cleaned up, funding rates have turned positive, and institutional basis has rebounded, traders are still paying a premium for downside protection in the short term.Currently, Bitcoin may record its fourth consecutive weekly decline, marking the longest losing streak since mid-November last year. At the same time, the slowdown in trading activity and the decline in volatility are also suppressing overall trading volume. In the derivatives market, the proportion of call option trading volume in the Bitcoin options market has risen to 65%, but the implied volatility term structure remains in a short-term inverted state, indicating that traders are still paying a high "panic premium" for immediate downside protection.

The Solana ecosystem's one-stop trading platform Bullet has announced that perpetual contract trading has gone live on the mainnet, with an underlying architecture designed for trading that can handle up to 30,000 orders per second, with latency as low as 1 millisecond.Currently, Bullet has launched a restricted access mainnet, and users who want to participate early need an access invitation code, which can be obtained by contacting team members. All waitlisted users will also have their access gradually opened in batches, with the first batch of users added to the whitelist today. It is reported that Bullet offers derivatives, spot, and lending products on the same platform, achieving a "trinity" one-stop service.

According to a report by Cointelegraph, a new analysis released by the Federal Reserve on Wednesday suggests that cryptocurrencies should be classified as a distinct asset class for the initial margin requirements in the "unsettled" derivatives market (including over-the-counter trading and other transactions not conducted through centralized clearinghouses).The report points out that the volatility of floating cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum, as well as stablecoins, differs significantly from traditional asset classes, making it unsuitable to apply the existing risk classifications for interest rates, stocks, foreign exchange, and commodities in standardized initial margin models. The authors recommend setting differentiated risk weights for these two categories of cryptocurrencies and propose constructing a benchmark index composed of half floating digital assets and half anchored stablecoins as a proxy variable to simulate the volatility and behavior of the crypto market, in order to calibrate more precise risk weights.Initial margin is a core risk control mechanism in the derivatives market, where traders must pledge collateral to mitigate counterparty default risk. The high volatility of crypto assets means that traders need to provide a higher proportion of collateral buffer. The report reflects that the federal level in the United States is making technical preparations for incorporating crypto assets into the existing regulatory framework.

Thailand is advancing the inclusion of cryptocurrencies into the country's regulated derivatives market.The Thai Securities and Exchange Commission recently announced that it will expand the scope of permissible underlying assets under derivatives regulations to include digital assets and carbon credits. This move follows the approval of a proposal by the Thai Cabinet. The proposal aims to align Thailand's derivatives market with international standards while maintaining strong regulation, risk mitigation, and investor protection measures. This adjustment by the Thai SEC formally recognizes digital assets (including cryptocurrencies) as a legitimate category of investment assets, qualifying them to become underlying assets for regulated derivatives. This means that in the future, futures, options, and other contract products linked to assets like Bitcoin may be launched on platforms such as the Thailand Futures Exchange. The Thai SEC plans to develop supporting regulatory guidelines, including revising derivatives business licenses to allow licensed digital asset operators to offer contract products anchored to digital assets. The agency will also review the licensing and regulatory framework for derivatives exchanges and clearinghouses to accommodate the demand for cryptocurrencies as new underlying products. Additionally, the Thai SEC stated that it will collaborate with the Thailand Futures Exchange to finalize the specifications for contract products anchored to digital assets to support risk management and practical market applications.

According to Decrypt, the Thai cabinet has approved amendments to the Derivatives Act, allowing digital assets to be used as underlying instruments for regulated derivatives. Pornanong Budsaratragoon, Secretary-General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), stated that this move will "promote more inclusive market growth, facilitate diversification and more effective risk management, and expand investment opportunities for a broader range of investors."The SEC will formulate subsequent rules to amend the derivatives license, enabling digital asset operators to offer crypto-related contracts and coordinate with the Thailand Futures Exchange (TFEX) to establish contract specifications.

The Thai Cabinet has approved amendments to the Derivatives Act, allowing digital assets to be used as supporting tools for regulated derivatives. The Secretary-General of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Pornanong Budsaratragoon, stated that this move will promote more inclusive market growth, facilitate diversification and more effective risk management, and expand investment opportunities for a broader range of investors.The SEC will formulate subsequent rules to amend the derivatives license, enabling digital asset operators to offer crypto-related contracts and coordinate with the Thailand Futures Exchange (TFEX) to establish contract specifications.

ChainCatcher message, bearish sentiment dominates the crypto market, with Bitcoin and Ethereum continuing their downward trend. In the past 24 hours, Bitcoin has fallen about 2.4% to around $66,900, while Ethereum has dropped about 2.7% below the $2,000 mark.On the macro front, the US dollar has weakened, and US Treasury yields have declined, leading to increased market expectations for a rate cut by the Federal Reserve. The Polymarket shows that the probability of a rate cut in March has risen from 7% at the beginning of the month to about 19%, while the Kalshi market is around 21%. In the derivatives market, BTC futures open interest has decreased to $15.6 billion, indicating a continued deleveraging trend, with funding rates turning negative (around -6% on Binance and about -0.5% on Bybit). The three-month basis has narrowed to 1.6%, reflecting a rapid cooling of institutional risk appetite.

According to Businesswire, Interactive Brokers announced that its platform has launched micro Bitcoin and micro Ethereum futures contracts for Coinbase Derivatives, providing customers with a low-cost cryptocurrency risk exposure management trading channel within a regulated framework available 24/7.The new contracts include monthly expiration varieties and perpetual type contracts.

Sonic Labs founder Andre Cronje posted on the X platform, "The derivatives platform Flying Tulip will launch two products: ftUSD and margin accounts. These products will support cross-chain liquidity, enabling leveraged spot trading and total return swaps."

CryptoQuant data shows that the Bitcoin price has fallen below the 50-day and 200-day moving averages, with a significant moving average divergence reflecting a correction or "repricing" phase following the previous uptrend. Additionally, CryptoQuant's Price Z-Score is currently -1.6, indicating that the Bitcoin price is below the statistical mean, which typically suggests increased selling pressure and weakened trend momentum. Historically, similar ranges have often corresponded to longer bottoming periods rather than quick rebounds.In the derivatives market, crypto analyst Darkfost pointed out that the seller-dominated pattern is strengthening. Data shows that last Sunday, the monthly net active trading volume (Net Taker Volume) turned significantly negative to -$272 million, while the active buy-sell ratio on Binance dropped below 1, indicating a significant increase in market selling pressure. Currently, futures trading volume is still significantly higher than spot inflows, and the market needs stronger spot buying to trigger a rebound.

According to charts and analysis released by Matrixport, Bitcoin is attempting to stage a counter-trend rebound after experiencing a capitulation-style sell-off. This round of decline has washed out weak positions and triggered passive selling pressure and chain liquidations in the derivatives market.In the short term, there is still some upward space from a technical perspective, but whether the rebound can be sustained largely depends on whether there is new capital to take over, rather than relying solely on short covering and systematic hedging funds. Matrixport points out that Bitcoin is still in a larger bear market reset phase, where rapid rebounds are not uncommon but often difficult to maintain. On-chain data also indicates that the current environment remains weak, with insufficient demand momentum and limited structural accumulation. Meanwhile, hedging activities in the options market are heating up, which may further amplify price volatility. If spot demand is insufficient, Bitcoin's price is more likely to experience a rapid decline, and the impact of derivatives on price will also increase.

According to the latest in-depth report by ChainCatcher, as liquidity in the cryptocurrency market continues to be under pressure and the trading activity of native assets declines, an increasing number of exchanges are turning their growth focus towards the on-chainization and derivatives trading of traditional assets such as metals and U.S. stocks. Among them, Gate is gradually demonstrating its platform advantages in this round of "all-asset competition" due to its early establishment of a complete product system and leading trading activity.Data from Coinglass shows that during the recent fluctuations in metal prices, the 24-hour trading volume of Gate's XAUT contracts remained stable in the range of $300 million to $500 million, with trading activity ranking among the top in the world for similar assets. In addition, Gate has maintained a high level of trading stickiness during the downturn in crypto spot markets through methods such as TradFi launch celebrations and trading incentives, with its strategy leaning more towards a "long-term retention" approach to all-asset expansion.ChainCatcher believes that as the industry gradually shifts from the "crypto narrative internal cycle" to a new stage of "global asset on-chain," the core of exchange competition is no longer just the speed of new listings, but rather the ability to find a balance between compliance boundaries, liquidity support, and risk management. From the current progress, Gate is occupying a more advantageous position in this structural shift and is expected to continue amplifying its first-mover advantage in the next stage of the integration of TradFi and the crypto market.

The digital asset trading platform Gate released its transparency report for January 2026, disclosing its phased progress in multi-asset trading and platform structure. The data shows that Gate continues to expand its influence in the derivatives sector, with a market share of derivatives rising to 11%; the trading volume of perpetual contracts grew from $911.2 billion in the first quarter of 2025 to $2.42 trillion in the third quarter, maintaining a high level of $1.93 trillion in the fourth quarter. Meanwhile, Gate TradFi has covered metals, foreign exchange, indices, commodities, and some stocks, with trading volume exceeding $20 billion since its launch.In terms of products and infrastructure, Gate is simultaneously advancing intelligent and on-chain capability construction. GateAI launched in January, focusing on market analysis and asset interpretation, with a user satisfaction rate of approximately 88% in the first month. After the upgrade, Perp DEX's monthly trading volume exceeded $5.5 billion, and the number of on-chain addresses for Gate Layer surpassed 100 million. In asset management, the on-chain earning TVL reached $1.301 billion, and the ETH staking scale hit a record high. In January, the overall reserve coverage ratio increased to 125%, with major assets maintaining excess reserves.Overall, Gate is continuously solidifying its long-term development foundation as a comprehensive digital asset platform through multi-asset coverage, expansion of trading scale, and upgrades in technological capabilities.

According to CoinDesk, the crypto market shows signs of stabilization after a significant sell-off on Tuesday, with Bitcoin and Ethereum rebounding from their recent lows, but the overall derivatives market remains in a risk-off state.On the macro level, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a government funding plan to end part of the government shutdown, boosting U.S. stock futures and global risk assets; precious metals also rebounded, with gold returning above $5,000 and silver rising to around $90, with a daily increase of nearly 6%.In the derivatives market, traders continue to reduce risk exposure, with the total nominal open interest of crypto futures contracts across the network dropping to $105.9 billion, the lowest level since April of last year. The 30-day implied volatility of Bitcoin has climbed to an annualized 53%, the highest level since December 1, while the open interest in Bitcoin and Ethereum futures has decreased by 0.7% and 2%, respectively.

Resolv Stablecoin Protocol Review of 2025 Progress and Outlook for 2026 PlansIn 2025, Resolv built a high-performance infrastructure, achieving deep integration across multiple currency markets and yield sources. Currently, the four core asset clusters in its collateral pool include delta-neutral ETH/BTC, USD-denominated DeFi lending and money market exposure, delta-neutral altcoins, and RWA.The main goals for Resolv in 2026 include: driving continuous growth in total customer value at an institutional scale, establishing USR as a primary asset; expanding the investment scope from Q1 to cover more investment-grade tokenized funds and gradually incorporating investment-grade RWA; optimistic about the continued penetration of stocks and commodities into the on-chain derivatives market, accessing traditional assets (such as gold, other commodities, stock indices, and individual stocks) through delta-neutral strategies, and utilizing on-chain derivatives venues for hedging and liquidity support; introducing external risk experts to further enhance decision-making transparency and observability; continuing to expand in the liquidity lending market under strict risk standards; and upgrading the Resolv infrastructure to a "stablecoin as a service" platform, among others.

Hyperliquid announced on X that it will introduce "Outcome Contracts" trading in HIP-4. Outcome Contracts are fully collateralized contracts that settle within a predefined range. They are a general-purpose primitive suitable for applications such as prediction markets and range-bound options-like instruments. There is already significant user demand for these two types of applications, and developers are likely to conceive more innovative use cases based on this primitive.Outcome Contracts introduce a nonlinear payoff structure, expiration contracts, and an alternative derivative trading form that does not involve leverage or liquidation mechanisms. This primitive expands the expressive power of HyperCore and can be combined with other primitives (such as the composite margin mechanism and HyperEVM). Outcome Contracts are currently still in development and are being tested only on the testnet at this stage. Once the technical development is complete, standardized (Canonical) markets based on objective settlement sources will be deployed, which will be priced in USDH. After collecting user feedback, the relevant infrastructure will further expand to a permissionless deployment model.

Coinbase's Coinbase Derivatives has announced the upcoming launch of the COIN50 perpetual futures contract. The official statement indicates that this is the first time in the U.S. market that a single perpetual futures contract will provide investors with overall exposure to the top 50 digital assets. The related product will be available to both retail and institutional traders and will be offered through approved futures commission merchants (FCMs).The Coinbase 50 Index (COIN50) is used to track the performance of the top 50 digital assets by market capitalization and liquidity, covering Bitcoin, Ethereum, and various emerging tokens. The index is rebalanced quarterly, with a maximum weight limit of 50% for any single component. Coinbase states that diversification can be achieved through a single contract, helping to simplify trading strategies and align more closely with overall market trends.

Hyperliquid announced on the X platform that HyperCore will support result trading (HIP-4). It is reported that a result is a fully collateralized contract with a settlement price confined within a fixed range. This is a generic foundational trading component suitable for applications such as prediction markets and bounded options tools.There is already significant user demand in the aforementioned two areas, and developers are likely to create innovative applications. Result trading introduces a non-linear yield structure, forward contracts, and a form of derivative trading that does not involve leverage or forced liquidation. This foundational component expands HyperCore's expressive capabilities and can be combined with other foundational components, such as composite margin and HyperEVM.The result trading feature is currently still in development and is being tested only on the testnet at this stage. A standard market based on objective settlement sources will be deployed after the technical development is completed, priced in USDH. After collecting user feedback, this infrastructure will expand to an open deployment model without permission.

The Hong Kong Legislative Council's Finance Committee announced that Member Li Weihong has been elected as the Chairman of the Finance Committee of the Hong Kong Legislative Council.Li Weihong had previously called for the promotion of the development of virtual assets and futures markets, expedited approval for license upgrades, suggested that the futures exchange achieve 23-hour trading as soon as possible, increase the variety of futures traded during holidays, and open more derivatives for virtual asset options and futures. In addition, Li Weihong also urged the Hong Kong government to accelerate the establishment of an international gold trading center and strive to join the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) as soon as possible, allowing the industry to export gold and other precious metals from Hong Kong to RCEP members at zero tariffs.

Coinbase announces that it will begin scheduled maintenance. Coinbase Derivatives will undergo system maintenance on January 24, 2026, at 23:30, during which it will be temporarily offline, with an expected duration of about 3 hours.