Two major leading indicators warn, Bitcoin is "in a state of panic"

Amid recent sharp fluctuations in Bitcoin prices, two key leading indicators from the options market and miners’ on-chain activities are sending increasingly strong warning signals.

The latest market trends show that traders are preparing for potential further downside risks. According to today’s report by Cointelegraph, a key indicator in the Bitcoin options market, the “delta skew,” has risen above 10%, indicating that professional traders are buying put options at a premium. This is typically seen as a classic signal of bearish market sentiment.

Meanwhile, miners’ moves are also drawing market attention. According to CryptoQuant data, since October 9, miner addresses have deposited about 51,000 Bitcoins into the Binance exchange. This is the largest scale of funds flowing into exchanges since July, which historically, often occurs before price weakness.

The simultaneous deterioration of these two major indicators has directly led to heightened risk-aversion in the market, and poses a severe test to Bitcoin’s price support levels. On Thursday, Bitcoin’s price once fell to $107,600.

Red Flag in Options Market, Surge in Bearish Bets

Data from the derivatives market clearly reflects traders’ growing concerns.

According to laevitas.ch data, the Bitcoin 30-day options delta skew indicator, which measures the sentiment of professional traders, has broken through 10%, significantly above the neutral range of -6% to +6%. This shows that market participants are willing to pay higher costs to buy put options to hedge against the risk of price declines.

Additionally, the demand for downside protection strategies has been confirmed in trading volumes. According to reports, on Thursday at Deribit exchange, the trading volume of put options was 50% higher than that of call options, with the indicator climbing to the highest level in over 30 days.

This signals that market pressure is mounting, as cryptocurrency traders typically tend toward optimism, resulting in normally lower put/call ratios.

Mass Transfers by Miners, History Points to Selling Pressure

Apart from signals from the derivatives market, the actions of one of the most critical participants in the Bitcoin ecosystem—miners—also add uncertainty to the market.

CryptoQuant data shows that in the seven days since October 9, miner addresses have transferred 51,000 Bitcoins, worth more than $5.7 billion, to Binance. On October 11 alone, miners deposited over 14,000 Bitcoins into Binance, which happened the day after the recent “major liquidation in crypto.” This scale is also the largest since last July.

CryptoQuant stated in its report on Thursday that when miners transfer Bitcoin from storage or mining wallets to trading platforms, it often means they might be preparing to sell or hedge.

The report emphasized that although these transfers may also be for collateral, financing, or operational reasons, historical experience shows that when miners begin to sell, the market generally does not have a good outcome.

This shift in sentiment from “holding” to “selling” has historically put pressure on Bitcoin prices and is often a precursor to major price corrections.

Bitcoin miners have shifted from holders to sellers, and historically, this suggests a sharp change in Bitcoin prices and market sentiment.

Risk Warning and DisclaimerThe market has risks, investment needs caution. This article does not constitute personal investment advice, nor does it consider individual users’ specific investment objectives, financial situation, or needs. Users should consider whether any opinions, views or conclusions in this article are suitable for their particular circumstances. Investments based on this article are at your own risk.