Our weekly crypto derivatives analytics report delves into macro events, the current state of crypto and trading signals from spot trading volume, and futures, options and perpetual contracts.

December's end-of-year options expiration brought an unexpected drop as realized volatility fell to the lowest levels of the month. Perpetual swap open interest remained stable, indicating these markets weren't heavily used for hedging against expired options, likely contributing to the muted volatility. 

While most expired open interest in Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) hasn't been reinvested, the balance of calls and puts remains consistent. Notably, ETH options are pricing in higher implied volatility as compared to BTC, particularly for shorter expirations, leading to a flat term structure for ETH, while BTC is offering cheaper options exposure.

In the perpetual markets, low volatility and minimal spot movements have led funding rates for nearly all tokens to mirror broader market sentiment throughout the holiday season. On the options side, BTC's term structure is noticeably lower and steeper than ETH's, with realized volatility now dipping below implied volatility levels, highlighting an intriguing shift in market dynamics.

Please check out the report’s highlights.

Open Interest Solid Amid Year-End Options Expiration

Although open interest for both BTC and ETH perpetual swaps hasn’t returned to early December 2024 highs, it remained robust throughout the significant end-of-year options expiration event. This suggests that these markets weren’t heavily utilized to 

 of the expiring options contracts, likely contributing to the lack of volatility observed during this period. Instead, trading volumes have dipped noticeably during the winter holiday season, coinciding with a collapse in realized volatility back to December 2024’s lowest levels.

BTC Option Curve Remains Steep During Call-Put Parity

The expiration of December's end-of-year options didn’t trigger the anticipated surge in volatility; instead, realized volatility has plummeted to the lower end of its recent range. The implied volatility term structure remains steep compared to both its recent behavior and ETH's, with longer-dated implied volatility around 57%, and 1-week at-the-money options trading about five points lower. Much of the expired open interest hasn’t yet been rolled into new positions, maintaining a neutral balance between puts and calls. Consequently, BTC's options market positioning is relatively neutral, lacking the leverage it had at the start of December 2024.

Huge ETH Option Expiring Doesn’t Cause Volatility

A late December spike in realized volatility didn’t carry into the new year, with ETH’s spot price currently exhibiting volatility below that of short-tenor implied volatility. Interestingly, the implied volatility term structure has undergone a steepening and re-flattening over the past week, contrasting with BTC’s slightly steeper profile. This suggests that ETH’s options market is anticipating higher short-term volatility in spot price movements. 

Despite the significant expiration of options open interest at the end of December 2024, which didn’t lead to a rollover into later expirations, call options continue to dominate the market and have increased at the start of 2025.

Advanced

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Bybit X Block Scholes Crypto Derivatives Analytics Report (Jan 2, 2025): BTC Options Continue to See Call-Put Parity, With Lower Short-Term Volatility Expected

Dive into FLock, a decentralized platform that revolutionizes the way AI models are developed, trained and deployed.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is poised to transform countless industries, but its development often raises questions about privacy, control and inclusivity. 

 is a unique decentralized platform that democratizes AI training, fine-tuning and inferencing. With its blockchain-powered infrastructure, FLock ensures transparency, security and community-driven decision-making, paving the way for AI models that align with established societal values. 

In this article, we’ll explore how FLock decentralizes AI training, its key features and its potential impact on developers, communities and users.

 platform that revolutionizes the way AI models are developed, trained and deployed. By leveraging blockchain technology and a novel approach called 

, FLock addresses critical issues in AI development, such as centralized control, lack of transparency and privacy concerns.

At its core, FLock’s mission is to democratize AI by enabling communities to participate directly in the creation and refinement of AI models. Through federated learning, FLock trains AI models across multiple decentralized devices or servers. This method ensures that data remains local, eliminating the need for raw data exchange while still enabling robust model training. By decentralizing the training process, FLock not only protects individual privacy, but also fosters a more inclusive ecosystem in which diverse contributors can collaborate.

What sets FLock apart is its integration of 

. This ensures that all contributions — whether data, compute power or feedback — are transparently recorded and fairly rewarded. Blockchain tech’s immutable ledger enhances trust among participants and safeguards the process against manipulation. Additionally, the platform’s on-chain incentive mechanisms encourage participation from a wide range of contributors, ensuring that rewards are distributed equitably.

Ultimately, FLock empowers communities to develop bespoke AI models tailored to their specific needs. By decentralizing the process and prioritizing transparency and collaboration, FLock breaks the monopoly of large corporations, creating an AI ecosystem that aligns with public ethics and societal values.

, an Oxford alumnus with a robust background in AI and blockchain technology. Sun, who serves as FLock's CEO, has an impressive career trajectory, having worked as the Director of AI for the Royal Bank of Canada and as an AI Research Fellow at Imperial College London. His vision for FLock stems from a deep understanding of both the technical and ethical challenges of AI development.

The founding team also includes other Oxford alumni, boasting over a decade of combined experience in AI research and the cryptocurrency industry. This team brings a collective blend of academic excellence and practical expertise that positions FLock to lead the decentralized AI movement.

FLock has successfully raised $11 million in funding across two rounds, reflecting strong investor confidence in its vision. In May 2024, FLock secured a $6 million seed round co-led by Lightspeed Faction and Tagus Capital, with additional backing from Digital Currency Group (DCG), Volt Capital, OKX Ventures and Inception Capital.

Later, in December 2024, FLock announced a $3 million successful funding round led by DCG and joined by prominent names like Animoca Brands, Fenbushi Capital, GnosisVC and GSR. These investments are being channelled into enhancing the platform’s testnet and federated learning client, accelerating FLock’s mission of enabling secure, collaborative AI development.

With this funding and over 1,500 nodes contributing from platforms like Numerai and Kaggle, FLock is rapidly scaling its impact on decentralized AI training.

FLock AI revolutionizes AI development through its decentralized training framework. This approach allows participants to contribute to AI model training without ever sharing their personal data. Instead, models are trained locally across devices using federated learning, which ensures that data remains with its owners while still enhancing the accuracy of the model overall. 

FLock’s reward system is designed to incentivize active participation. Contributors who provide data, computational power and/or feedback are compensated with FLOCK tokens, ensuring a fair distribution of rewards. 

FLock empowers its community through a robust governance framework. Decisions regarding AI model development, deployment and ethical considerations are driven by the community, ensuring alignment with established societal values. Through blockchain-based voting mechanisms, contributors can influence the direction of AI projects, fostering transparency and public accountability. 

FLock’s modular architecture allows contributors to participate in specific aspects of AI model development. Whether providing raw data or computational power or even refining algorithms, the platform enables a collaborative and scalable development process. 

At the core of FLock’s philosophy is its commitment to privacy and security. By leveraging blockchain technology, the platform ensures that no single entity controls the AI development process. Data remains local and protected by cryptographic measures, while the immutability of blockchain guarantees transparency in every transaction and model update. 

 begins with a blockchain and an AI layer.

The blockchain layer underpins FLock’s incentivization and security mechanisms.

The AI layer facilitates model training, refinement and deployment, leveraging both centralized and federated approaches.

Let’s have a look at the supply and demand for the FLOCK token.

FLock adopts a 1:2 ratio model between team/investors (33.3%) and community (66.7%), prioritizing community-driven growth and ecosystem expansion. The majority of tokens are allocated to incentivize user participation and long-term ecosystem success.

FLock aims to improve the future of AI development by decentralizing the training process and ensuring transparency, privacy and inclusivity. By leveraging blockchain and federated learning, FLock empowers communities to contribute to AI creation without compromising on privacy. Its innovative reward system and community-driven governance foster a fair and collaborative ecosystem. 

With significant backing and a growing network of contributors, FLock is positioning itself as a leader in decentralized AI, offering a more ethical and secure alternative to traditional AI development models. As it continues to scale, FLock is set to transform the way AI models are built and deployed.

 — and earn a share of a 10 million FLOCK prize pool. For more details, visit 

Intermediate

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FLock AI: Decentralized AI Training

In this tutorial, we’ll explore how you can complete a series of tasks in Network3 for Bybit Web3 Airdrop Arcade.

Task 1: Register for a Network3 Account and Connect Your Bybit Wallet 

: Navigate to the campaign page and click on the 

task. Click on the task, and Galxe will ask to redirect you to the Network3 register page.

: Register for a Network3 account using your email address. You may indicate a 

Task 2: Download the Network3 App and Run a Node for One Hour

 and choose your operating system to download the Network3 app.

 or powerbutton, depending upon which operating system you’re using. For ease of reference, we’ve used macOS and iOS as examples below.

: Keep running the node until the timer reaches 

Beginner

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How to Complete Network3 Tasks for Bybit Web3 Airdrop Arcade

Bybit launched the Bybit Merch Creative Challenge for university students worldwide, offering a $50,000 USDT prize pool.

The S&P 500 dropped 0.22% on Thursday, its fifth straight decline, with investors eyeing Friday’s economic updates. Coindesk Indices, an index measuring broader cryptocurrency market performance was up by 2.03%, with Bitcoin and Ether rising by 2.79% and 2.70%, respectively in the past 24 hours.

Today's top performer is XRP, which surged 1.9% following a rise in price driven by increased open interest and positive market sentiment.

Ripple (XRP), launched in August 2012, is a blockchain technology company focused on improving international payments with its cryptocurrency, XRP. XRP price surged due to increased open interest, a major XRP transfer, and market sentiment linked to Trump's inauguration. Bullish momentum is supported by high short liquidations, with key resistance levels to watch for further price movement.

Check Out the Latest Prices, Charts, and Data of 

 for university students worldwide, offering a $50,000 USDT prize pool. Participants can design exclusive Bybit merchandise, with submissions open until Jan. 15, 2025. Winners will be announced on Feb. 1, 2025, across four prize categories.

Yesterday, Bitcoin Spot ETFs recorded a total inflow of $84.8M, driven by $107.9M from non-GBTC funds, partially offset by a $23.1M outflow from GBTC.

, offering an airdrop for participants who complete tasks like swapping and bridging using the Mango wallet. Points earned through tasks determine airdrop rewards. Join via the Mango wallet and follow steps on the testnet dashboard.

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Bybit Launches $50,000 Merch Design Challenge for University Students Worldwide

Bybit Learn

Blockchain

Legion Network is a super app that provides an all-in-one user experience with a robust selection of easy-to-use features. Learn more about it here.

projects, and each is designed with a unique set of features and functions for users to explore and take advantage of. With so many projects, however, using multiple networks has become common for users. While common, the use of many networks can be burdensome and time-consuming. Super apps are changing the playing field as a simplified yet robust platform for all needs. One of the most exciting super apps in use today is Legion Network.

Legion Network is designed specifically to simplify the user experience and to improve on pain points recognized with other apps and super apps. Its features include a launchpad, education options, rewards, a wallet, gaming and numerous others. The utility token for this super blockchain ecosystem, LGX, plays a key role in the functionality and user accessibility to these features. In addition, Legion Network supports an active, engaged community through the creation of personalized user profiles, which are gamified and display earned badges, personal stats and progress toward goals.

The concept of Legion Network was formalized in the first half of 2021, and was quickly followed by the assembly of a research and development team. By the first quarter of 2022, Legion Network had received significant funding and launched its app. It ranked

at the first Global Blockchain Congress in 2021, hosted in Dubai. By the second quarter of 2022, its native token, LGX, was launched, and there were more than four million app downloads. By the end of 2022, Legion Network launched Bluemoon and hosted special metaverse events. Work on additional Legion Network features continues today.

Legion Network has been created specifically as a super app with a simplified interface and robust features. It aims to streamline and enhance the overall blockchain experiences for users by being an all-in-one platform, combining features such as a

, with other features for gaming, launching new projects, education and more. As development continues on upcoming features, Legion Network strives to further enhance the user experience and maintain its status as a top super app.

As a super app, Legion Network is designed with numerous features for a complete blockchain experience. With applications for education, gaming, staking and more available through one interface, users can avoid time waste and confusion associated with using multiple networks for different functions.

As a super blockchain ecosystem, Legion Network is designed with a full spectrum of exciting, easy-to-use features. Collectively, these features create an all-in-one app experience while also fostering a deep sense of community and engagement through Legion’s personalized profiles. In order to access the following features, users must first download the Legion Network super app on the

, which means that a user keeps control of their own

for optimized security. This is a user-friendly wallet that supports over 15,000 digital assets on more than three dozen blockchains, and is integrated with a

for optimized utility. It also supports NFTs with both display and storage features. 

is the gaming feature within the Legion Network. It features a

model that’s rewarding for even casual players. Numerous games that are designed to be both simple and engaging are available. Many game genres are represented, offering achievement rewards, leaderboards and other features to promote competitive play.

Legion Network fosters learning through its

. Users can access interactive modules and tutorials, and can even complete courses. The topics covered enhance blockchain and crypto skills and knowledge. Through the Continuing Professional Development (CPD) courses, users can obtain certificates recognized throughout the blockchain industry.

Legion Network fosters creativity and innovation among its community members through its

, which is integrated with engagement and staking functions to optimize the success of new projects. Users can take advantage of live pitches, analysis reports and a dashboard, along with guaranteed allocation (by staking their own LGX) and buying allocation bundles.

is a unique section of the Legion Network platform that encourages and rewards participation. Specifically, users receive

by participating in various ways that include watching ads, logging in regularly and more. Bolts can be redeemed in the Bolts Store, and they provide businesses with an easy way to increase exposure. The Rewards feature also fosters community growth by enhancing the reputation and visibility of Legion Network.

can be earned in various ways throughout the Legion Network ecosystem. These points can be redeemed in the

for exclusive access to the network’s premium content and special features. Bolts can also be used to more strategically display projects on Legion Launchpad. Users can even use Bolts to buy raffle tickets. Raffle winners are rewarded with exciting prizes that are updated frequently. There are also various in-app items available for purchase through the Bolts Store, including tournament access, premium passes and more.

While users can make in-game purchases, access special features and take advantage of other features with their Bolts, they can also purchase raffle tickets.

are held regularly, and generally offer big prizes for a small entry. Rather than having a set raffle date, raffles are based on a specific number of entries. This allows excitement to build as the prize pot grows.

can be purchased using Bolts, and they may also be

to stakers and premium members from time to time. These boxes hold random rewards that may include premium memberships, more Bolts, NFTs and other rewards. Through the Bolts Store, users can select the specific Mystery Box that they’re interested in. Once purchased, the Mystery Box’s prize can be opened and claimed.

The Legion Network community has experienced considerable growth in numbers and strength in part through its

. Users are incentivized to refer friends and family members through a rewards mechanism, and the referral system consistently reinforces community growth as more members join and use the platform.

is both the Legion Network’s metaverse and a collaborative NFT marketplace. It serves creators and businesses by enabling the creation of an immersive experience for their NFTs. This collaborative NFT marketplace supports trading, and it offers more tools than other established NFT marketplaces.

R&D for Legion Network began in Q2 2021. Development on applications like Empower Academy, Legion Wallet and others continued through the end of 2021. In 2022, Legion Network benefited from seed and private funding, as well as the app’s private and public launch. The LGX token was also launched in 2022. 

To date, there are more than 140,000 unique token holders, and the app has been downloaded more than four million times. Thus far, many venture capitalists, blockchain industry leaders and tech experts have actively supported the development of Legion Network. Looking forward, Legion Network will add more games on Arcadia, focus on marketing, integrate fiat on Bluemoon and take other initiatives.

while also facilitating a better user experience. LGX is required for accessing the platform’s educational resources, participating in and creating games in Arcadia, listing projects on Legion Launchpad, earning staking rewards, making in-app purchases and participating in the Bluemoon metaverse. 

Holding LGX gives users voting rights to help steer the future development of Legion Network. LGX is a

and buybacks impacting the circulating supply. Burn events take place quarterly.

As of Jul 13, 2023, the current price of LGX is $0.00263714, reflecting a decrease of 0.1% over the last 24 hours. The ATH of the Legion Network token was $0.216937, occurring on Apr 30, 2022. The 24-hour trading volume is $126,939, which represents a 6.6% increase over the past 24 hours, and the highest market cap reached thus far is close to $200 million. 

may gradually increase through 2030. It’s expected to reach $0.004 by the end of 2023, $0.009 by the end of 2025, $0.028 in 2028 and $0.059 in 2030. 

will increase to $0.00614 by the end of 2023, $0.00979 by 2025, $0.0152 in 2028 and $0.0293 by 2030.

LGX is available for purchase on several major exchanges, including Bybit. On Bybit, you can place spot trades in a few quick steps after you open an account. To get started, simply

, fund it with cryptocurrency and navigate to the

Legion Network is a blockchain ecosystem that has already attracted the attention of top industry leaders and experts. Numerous venture capitalists have also provided funding for continued development. The current price of LGX is relatively low, which enables investors to purchase a significant number of tokens at a minimal cost. 

Legion Network’s price is expected to grow slowly over the next decade, and significant profits could be generated through a volume purchase. While the crypto market is recognized for its extreme volatility and all investments should be made only after careful, independent

, Legion Network shows promise. As a super app with robust and growing functionality, it has already attracted strong support among industry leaders, experts and financiers. In addition, it has a strong community of users and incentivizes them to participate in growing the network’s membership base.

While the blockchain industry has offered a fractured and complicated user experience through its many niche networks thus far, super apps like Legion Network are changing the game. To experience the benefits of Legion Network for yourself, download the app today.

Legion Network (LGX): The Rise of the Blockchain Super App

Grab Up to 5,000 USDT in Rewards

Grab Up to 5,000 USDT in Rewards