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.

After initially resisting US president Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs, crypto markets joined the global sell-off, with BTC falling from $87K on April 2 to a low of $74K. BTC’s term structure was inverted again before easing, while ETH’s term structure remained inverted. Meanwhile, short-term BTC volatility skews favored OTM puts, reflecting more bearish sentiment than during the Q1 2023 US banking crisis. However, volatility levels decreased after Trump announced a 90-day pause on tariffs (excluding those on China), leading to a significant rally in spot prices.

Please check out the report’s highlights.

BTC open interest declined substantially this week

Bybit’s largest perpetual swap markets initially remained stable during the broader market sell-off and tariff reactions, recovering from the dip after the 

. However, Trump’s recent announcement and subsequent pause of near-unilateral import tariffs significantly impacted these markets, leading to notable declines in open interest for BTC and ETH, which have fallen sharply from their late March highs.

After a brief period of positive funding rates, BTC’s perpetual swap market fluctuated between positive and negative sentiment, indicating traders were hesitant to commit to a strong directional move (similar to trends in options markets). This changed when President Trump announced a 90-day tariff relief, leading to positive jumps in funding rates. Altcoins displayed a similar pattern, with funding rates alternately positive and negative before rising following the tariff announcement.

During the April 6–7, 2025 sell-off, traders sought downside protection, as BTC's spot price fell to $75K in reaction to President Trump’s tariff announcement. The high volume of put options relative to calls indicates strong demand for this protection. Meanwhile, the US's reciprocal tariffs caused a significant inversion in BTC’s at-the-money volatility term structure, which, although it has eased, remains inverted. Additionally, there‘s a stronger skew toward OTM puts at short tenors as compared to the March 2023 US banking crisis. Put open interest has surged over the past week, reflecting extremely bearish sentiment for both the near and long terms.

Advanced

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Bybit X Block Scholes crypto derivatives analytics report (Apr 9, 2025): Tariffs bring substantial volatility at a level similar to that of the Q1 2023 US banking crisis

In this tutorial, we’ll explore how you can stake and mint Lombard LBTCv on Bybit Web3 Staking with the Bybit Web3 Seed Phrase Wallet. 

In this tutorial, we’ll explore how you can stake BTC to mint 

Please note that in order to get started, you’ll first need to download the Bybit App on the Apple App Store or Google Play Store. 

How to stake and mint LBTCv with Bybit Web3 Staking

: Launch the Bybit App on your mobile device and tap on the 

: Deposit BTC into your preferred Bybit Web3 Seed Phrase Wallet BTC address.

: Once you’ve deposited BTC into your wallet address, tap on the 

drop-down and select the BTC address into which you’ve deposited BTC. 

: Input the exact amount of BTC you’d like to stake, and tap on 

 and sign the message to allow this exact amount of BTC to be staked.

 page. Ensure that the amount of BTC is exactly the same as you wish to stake, and tap on 

: Tap on the icon located at the upper-right corner of the screen to check your transaction history.

: You’ll receive LBTCv in three progressive stages:

: Once you’ve received LBTCv, you can check your points (updated every hour).

If you wish to stake more BTC, simply repeat Steps 7 through 12. However, please

that you won’t be able to stake more BTC as long as you haven’t yet received your LBTCv.

To redeem your LBTC, simply scroll down the 

button. Then, wait three days for the successful redemption of LBTC.

If you wish to cancel your redemption, you can do so within these three days.

Beginner

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How to stake and mint Lombard LBTCv with Bybit Web3 Staking

A Chainlink Spot ETF would bridge TradFi and crypto, offering a simplified way to gain exposure to LINK without the complexities of digital wallets or exchanges.

There's been a recent surge in spot ETF applications as investors look for ways to sidestep the rigid frameworks of traditional finance. The success of 

 — drawing billions in inflows — signals a major shift in the way institutions approach crypto investments. 

 networks, is in line for its own Spot ETF. The proposed fund promises a direct, hassle-free way to invest in Chainlink (LINK), eliminating the need to deal with complex 

 and exchanges. This article explores what a Chainlink Spot ETF is, how it would work, its current market impact and what its potential approval could mean for investors and the broader crypto landscape.

A Chainlink Spot ETF is an exchange-traded fund, backed by Chainlink (LINK) tokens, that would directly track the market price of LINK, a cryptocurrency powering decentralized oracle networks, thus enabling investors to gain exposure without directly holding the asset itself.

 (ETF) would offer investors direct exposure to LINK’s price movements without requiring the investors to handle the digital asset directly. 

Authorized Participants (APs), typically large financial institutions or market makers approved by the ETF issuer, play a central role in maintaining liquidity and aligning the ETF’s market price with its net asset value (NAV). These entities facilitate the creation and redemption of ETF shares by acquiring LINK tokens from exchanges or over-the-counter markets, and transferring them to the ETF’s custodian, a regulated entity responsible for secure storage. 

In exchange, the ETF issuer provides APs with newly created shares, which represent fractional ownership of the underlying assets. The shares are then introduced to secondary markets for investors to trade.

Creation, redemption and listing of shares

When redeeming shares, APs collect ETF shares from the market and return them to the issuer, receiving LINK tokens from the custodian in return. These tokens can be sold on the open market or held, depending upon the AP’s strategy. This creation-redemption process enables an 

 mechanism that stabilizes the ETF’s price, relative to its underlying assets. 

If the ETF is trading at a premium to NAV, APs create and sell shares to capitalize on the price difference, pushing the market price downward. Conversely, if the ETF is trading at a discount, APs redeem shares, reducing supply and driving the price upward. This dynamic ensures that the ETF’s market price remains closely tied to LINK’s actual value. 

Shares are listed on exchanges and traded like traditional stocks, integrating seamlessly into existing portfolios while offering potential tax efficiencies. The structure combines the accessibility of conventional investments with the benefits of cryptocurrency exposure, appealing to those seeking indirect participation in LINK’s market movements through a regulated and familiar framework. For investors, the ETF will simplify exposure to Chainlink by eliminating the need to manage 

 or wallets, or navigate complex crypto exchanges. 

The Hashdex Nasdaq Crypto Index US ETF, which includes Chainlink (LINK), has gained attention as a significant development in the crypto ETF space. This ETF, 

 in February 2025 and currently provides exposure to Bitcoin and Ethereum. 

 with the SEC on Mar 14, 2025 to expand the ETF's scope to include additional cryptocurrencies like LINK, ADA and SOL. This application remains the sole filing for a Spot Link ETF (as of Mar 20, 2025). While the SEC has approved the fund's initial structure, its response to the inclusion of Chainlink and other assets remains pending.

The SEC has historically been cautious about approving spot cryptocurrency ETFs, due to concerns about market manipulation and investor protection. However, the approval of multi-asset ETFs such as NCIQ signals a potential shift in regulatory attitudes. Market sentiment has been cautiously optimistic, with investors viewing these developments as a step toward broader acceptance and integration of cryptocurrencies into traditional financial systems. The timeline for the approval of Chainlink Spot ETFs remains uncertain, but growing institutional interest and regulatory advancements suggest progress in the near future.

Current impact of Chainlink Spot ETF applications on the crypto market

The anticipation surrounding Chainlink Spot ETF applications is clearly influencing market sentiment. Although Chainlink's price hasn’t yet surged dramatically, increased investor interest and speculation about potential ETF approvals have boosted overall optimism. 

Data from LINK and CoinGlass reveals that 

 have fallen to 138.8 million coins, the lowest since September 2024, indicating that investors are holding onto their tokens in self-custody wallets instead of selling. This trend reflects a growing belief that SEC approval for a Spot LINK ETF could substantially boost the token’s price. In addition, Chainlink’s role as one of the largest oracle networks and its innovative cross-chain interoperability protocol for asset tokenization further reinforce this positive outlook.

What will it mean if a Chainlink Spot ETF application is approved?

The approval of a Chainlink Spot ETF would have some significant implications for both the cryptocurrency market and traditional financial sectors, as follows.

If you’re looking to capture the market and trade LINK tokens, Bybit offers the 

A Chainlink Spot ETF would connect cryptocurrency with traditional finance by allowing investors to track LINK’s price without the complications of managing digital wallets. Specifically, it would keep the ETF's price in line with LINK’s market value, increase liquidity and attract institutional investors. Approval of a Chainlink Spot ETF could drive LINK's price higher, similar to trends seen with Bitcoin ETFs, and confirm Chainlink’s importance in the crypto ecosystem, encouraging its use across various industries. 

However, investors need to be cautious of potential short-term price swings and changes in regulations. Overall, this ETF would make crypto investing simpler for a broader audience, strengthening Chainlink’s position and supporting wider acceptance of blockchain technology in the financial world.

Intermediate

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Chainlink Spot ETF: A gateway to decentralized oracle investment

Huma Finance 2.0, a composable platform built on Solana, introduces real-world yield derived from global payment financing.

The S&P 500 fell 3.5% as renewed U.S.-China trade tensions erased gains from Trump’s tariff pause. Investors now await consumer sentiment data and bank earnings. Gold jumped 2.6% to a record $3,171 amid U.S.-China trade tensions, weaker dollar, and rising Fed rate cut bets. The Coindesk Indices, which tracks the broader crypto market, are down by 1.50%, with Bitcoin and Ether down 3.29% and 8.79% respectively in the past 24 hours. Trade these markets and more with up to 500x leverage on Bybit MT5 using this 

Today's top performer is ZRC, up 34.3%, followed by Zircuit's partnership with Diffuse Protocol to enhance the DeFi ecosystem with real-time data and secure cross-chain interoperability.

Zircuit (ZRC), founded in 2021, is a hybrid Layer 2 blockchain combining optimistic and ZK rollups, offering fast transactions, low costs, and strong security through AI-driven monitoring. EVM-compatible and designed for DeFi, it supports staking and asset transfers via its Liquidity Hub and secure native bridge. Zircuit has 

 with Diffuse Protocol to enhance its platform. Diffuse provides real-time verifiable data feeds, trustless cross-chain data streams, and restaking of assets with collateral abstraction, further strengthening Zircuit's AI-powered hybrid zkEVM and boosting its DeFi ecosystem.

Check out the latest prices, charts, and data of 

, a composable platform built on Solana, introduces real-world yield derived from global payment financing. The platform offers two options: Classic Mode for stable USDC yield and Maxi Mode for increased rewards through Huma Feathers. Through the $PST token, users can engage with DeFi protocols, swap tokens, and use them as collateral. Huma Finance has already processed over $3.8 billion in transactions, providing reliable yields sourced from payment-financing fees instead of market speculation. Huma 2.0 aims to bring a new liquidity model to DeFi, offering a more stable alternative to traditional financial cycles.

Yesterday, Bitcoin spot ETFs saw $149.5M in net outflows, with $44.6M from GBTC and $104.9M from other ETFs.

 has raised an additional $10M in its Series B round, bringing total funding to $35.5M with backing from a16z and other top investors. Users can boost their airdrop points by joining Towns, especially higher-priced ones, and by engaging through daily actions like tipping, inviting friends, and participating in different communities.

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Huma Finance 2.0 launches on Solana, introducing real-world yield and composable DeFi integration

Blockchain

Explainers

Altcoins

ZetaChain (ZETA) is a Layer 1 blockchain and interoperational platform that enables cross-chain data exchanges and smart contract executions. 

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Blockchain networks are designed to maintain strict security and insulation from external attacks, so they frequently face challenges in facilitating cross-chain data exchanges. Early blockchains like 

 (POL) were created to prioritize secure operations and asset transfers within their operational environments. As a result, sending assets or executing smart contracts across blockchains is far from a trivial activity.

 help facilitate cross-chain asset transfers, they often involve 

 on the sending network and minting the equivalent assets on the destination chain — which decreases efficiency and scalability, and increases transfer costs. Even cross-chain transactions between highly compatible chains carry significant overhead. When it comes to executing 

 across chains, the available options are even more limited.

Inefficiency of inter-blockchain communication has led to active R&D in pursuit of solutions. One of the latest and potentially most eloquent is offered by ZetaChain (ZETA), whose pioneering platform can read and write data across multiple blockchain networks, enabling cross-chain data exchanges and smart contract execution. 

 platform that enables cross-chain data exchanges and smart contract executions. 

 (DApps) built on ZetaChain utilize smart contracts that can read and write data across different chains. This allows the DApps to leverage the features of multiple different blockchains as if the apps were based and operated on a single one. ZetaChain supports omnichain programmability not only for smart platforms, such as Ethereum or Polygon, but also for non–smart contract chains that don’t natively feature such functionality, e.g., Bitcoin or 

Ankur Nandwani, a former Coinbase team member and the creator of the 

 (BAT) cryptocurrency, founded the ZetaChain project in 2021. Its platform launched testnet operations in 2022. Soon after, ZetaChain’s innovative concept of omnichain smart contracts attracted significant interest from the investor community, and the project raised $27 million in venture capital funding in 2023. On Feb 1, 2024, Zetachain launched its mainnet.

The ZetaChain platform is theoretically capable of connecting any chains. For now, however, its team is focusing integration efforts on the largest blockchains — Bitcoin, Ethereum, Polygon and 

At the base level, ZetaChain’s Layer 1 blockchain uses 

 (PoS) algorithm with smart contract functionality. ZetaChain’s smart contracts can read and write data on any chain to which they’ve established a connection, enabling seamless asset transfers and smart contract execution capability across multiple chains. 

Thanks to this omnichain functionality, ZetaChain-based DApps can utilize assets on other chains without the need for asset bridging – including chains like Bitcoin, which lack smart chain functionality. ZetaChain’s architecture features 

 (zEVM), anEthereum-compatible engine that powers the omnichain smart contracts.

As noted above, ZetaChain is a PoS network. As such, it depends upon validator nodes to process blocks of transactions. In addition to these core validators, the platform features another type of network actors: hyper-connected nodes. These special 

 continually monitor cross-chain communication and transactions across the entire multi-chain setup, and help flag any inconsistent or fraudulent transactions that might occur during cross-chain exchanges.

While the job of the core validator nodes is to secure the main ZetaChain Layer 1 network, hyper-connected nodes are the primary guardians of cross-chain security.

Omnichain smart contracts are the most distinct feature of the ZetaChain protocol. They’re used to orchestrate transaction activity across different blockchain networks. In order to provide omnichain smart contract functionality, ZetaChain has implemented a ZRC-20 token standard – an extension of the 

-compatible networks. Unlike ERC-20, ZetaChain’s ZRC-20 standard can support smart functionality for assets based on non-smart chains.

Any fungible crypto asset — whether it’s an ERC-20 token on Ethereum or Polygon, BTC, DOGE or any other asset type — can be represented on ZetaChain’s cross-chain protocol as a ZRC-20 token

. Using this unified standard allows ZetaChain DApps to coordinate transaction activity across all of the connected chains as if it’s occurring on a single network. Therefore, no multiple representation of assets across the participating chains is required. This crucial innovation makes ZetaChain a truly convenient ecosystem in which Bitcoin, Ether and ERC-20 tokens can all be utilized in multiple DApps on a single chain.

ZetaChain also supports cross-chain messaging to pass lightweight data across different blockchains. Cross-chain message and data transfers can be used when full-scale smart contract functionality isn’t required by an app. While the use of complex functionality and smart contract logic requires omnichain contracts, cross-chain messaging is more suitable for simple use cases, e.g., 

 transfers or basic DApps that require minimal data exchange.

The ZetaChain protocol can also be used to manage assets and vaults hosted on other blockchains remotely. This function allows you to apply smart contract logic to non–smart contract chains like Bitcoin and Dogecoin.

ZETA is ZetaChain’s native crypto token, used to pay block rewards, gas fees and for cross-chain transactions. It’s also utilized on the platform’s core crypto pools to provide liquidity and to incentivize 

 (LPs). Additionally, ZETA serves as a governance token. ZETA holders can vote on important network and policy changes affecting the protocol and its Layer 1 chain.

The token’s initial supply, specified at 2.1 billion, has already been minted. Of this, 31.5 million ZETA are allotted to the genesis 

, dedicated to those who have been using and contributing to ZetaLabs before its platform’s mainnet launch. Over 800,000 participants were deemed eligible after a snapshot was taken on Aug 20, 2023.

During the initial four years, ZETA’s total supply will remain fixed at 2.1 billion. After that, there will be a yearly supply inflation of about 2.5%. The precise amount of token inflation will depend upon ZETA’s circulating supply at the time. Initial ZETA supply distribution shares are shown in the image below.

You might consider investing in the ZETA token based on the following factors:

1. ZetaChain is among the first platforms to provide native-level. cross-chain communication and asset manipulation. This functionality has the potential to achieve mass adoption. As DApps become more sophisticated, developers and operators will be increasingly interested in the omnichain features provided by the platform. The wider adoption of ZetaChain smart contracts would, in turn, lead to a higher demand for the ZETA token.

2. Enabling smart functionality and external asset management for non–smart contract chains like Bitcoin and Dogecoin is another promising feature of ZetaChain. This is particularly relevant for the Bitcoin blockchain, given the global army of BTC holders — according to 

, now totaling over 100 million — who, by blockchain industry standards, represent an enormous potential target audience. 

While there are many cross-chain solutions attempting to bring smart contract–like functionality to Bitcoin, ZetaChain differs in one critical aspect: its DApps can easily combine the management of Bitcoin assets with those from other popular chains, including Ethereum, Polygon and BNB. For example, with ZetaChain you can utilize your BTC funds in advanced 

 operations and swaps with ETH, BNB, POL and other popular cryptos.

) on Bybit. From Jan 31 to Feb 19, 2024, you can participate in the Token Splash campaign to 

. New users who sign up with Bybit and deposit a minimum of 300 ZETA or deposit 100 USDT to trade ZETA get to earn 100 ZETA, while current Bybit users can earn 25 ZETA for completing the same tasks.

And from Jan 31 to Feb 14, 2024, you can also 

. Choose from two staking options: a USDT pool with a 850,000 ZETA prize pool, or a ZETA pool with 850,000 ZETA. 

ZetaChain’s mainnet launch signifies an important step in the evolution of blockchain technology, since ZetaChain’s unique omnichain smart contracts will make native-level asset operations across different chains a seamless experience. 

DApps that combine assets and contract operations across a multitude of blockchain platforms may soon become the norm in the industry — thanks to the innovative ZetaChain protocol!

What Is ZetaChain (ZETA): The Omnichain for a Unified Crypto World

Grab Up to 5,000 USDT in Rewards

Grab Up to 5,000 USDT in Rewards