Ethereum surged 29% this week, breaking a 10-week downtrend and catching short sellers off guard with $400M liquidated. 

The S&P 500 extended its rally with a nine-day winning streak, its longest since 2004, as optimism over potential trade deals and upcoming Fed and earnings updates lifted sentiment. Gold rose to $3,245 on trade uncertainty and Fed rate cut hopes. CoinDesk Indices, which tracks the broader crypto market, fell 1.50% in the past 24 hours, while Bitcoin and Ether dropped 0.10% and 0.51%, respectively. Trade these markets and more with up to 500x leverage on Bybit MT5 using this 

Today's top performer is AI16Z, which surged 7.0% after Bonsai's smart media protocol integrated with Eliza to empower agent-driven social content creation.

elizaOS (AI16Z), launched in October 2024, formerly ai16z, is a Solana-based DApp that uses a DAO and an AI agent, "Marc AIndreessen," to manage community-driven investments in tech and crypto projects. 

, lets developers create agent-driven social media scripts and templates using ElizaOS plugins. The Bonsai Client, its first implementation, enables easy deployment of these smart media agents on platforms like Lens. Builders can explore these tools and compete for prizes in the Lens Spring Hackathon.

Check out the latest prices, charts, and data of 

Ethereum surged 29% this week, breaking a 10-week downtrend and catching short sellers off guard with $400M liquidated. Despite muted ETF flows and neutral derivatives sentiment, ETH’s dominance remains unshaken—boasting $64B in TVL, dwarfing Solana, BNB Chain, and Tron combined. With fresh momentum from the recent pectra upgrades and Trump distancing from rival altcoins, all eyes are now on a potential push toward $2,700. 

BTC spot ETFs saw $920.9M in net inflows this week, driven by $1.09B into non-GBTC funds despite $171.5M outflows from GBTC. Since inception, total net inflows stand at $41.1B.

 are now live and claimable as a small bonus for users farming the upcoming Aster (AST) airdrop. By depositing BNB to mint asBNB, users can start earning points toward both the main airdrop and future ecosystem rewards. Optional perp trading can boost points further, but simply holding asBNB is enough to qualify.

Beginner

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Ethereum outperforms with a 20% rally as fresh capital flows in and undervaluation signals flash

Our monthly report delves into insights from options volatility to inspire your next crypto move.

: April 2025 saw BTC's implied volatility surge above 75% due to tariff chaos, but it collapsed to 35% within a week, indicating a surprising short-term drop in volatility expectations despite ongoing macro uncertainty.

: BTC's return above $100K was met with muted enthusiasm in the derivatives market, suggesting that 

traders no longer view this level as a significant psychological barrier, and the rally isn’t likely to be sustained.

: ETH significantly outperformed BTC with a 23% rally, leading to increased demand for short-dated calls and a positive shift in the options market, highlighting renewed bullish sentiment.

: Historical trends suggest a potential summer lull in volatility in store for BTC, raising questions about whether this pattern will repeat in 2025 amidst ongoing macroeconomic challenges.

Bitcoin’s volatility plunges in late April

April 2025 witnessed significant volatility in the cryptocurrency market, particularly influenced by US trade policies. As President Trump announced steep reciprocal tariffs, the crypto landscape experienced sharp fluctuations. Bitcoin (BTC) initially demonstrated resilience, despite widespread sell-offs in equities and the US dollar, only to succumb to a decline from $88K to $75K by early April. This period was characterized by a dramatic rise in implied volatility that peaked above 75% as traders sought protection through short-dated puts. However, as the tariffs faced moderation, implied volatility plummeted to 35% by mid-April, marking the lowest level since early March.

Interestingly, while short-tenor volatility collapsed, 

the back end of BTC's term structure remained elevated, signaling that market participants expect heightened volatility in the mid-term

. Amidst this backdrop, realized volatility fell below the five-year seasonal average, paralleling similar trends in previous years and suggesting a 

. The historical pattern contrasts that BTC often experiences a rebound in volatility heading into May, raising questions about whether this trend will persist.

Subdued derivative response suggests Bitcoin rally might not endure

The market's reaction to BTC's resurgence above the $100K threshold was notably subdued compared to previous instances. While BTC rallied 20% following the initial tariff sell-off, the derivatives market displayed a muted response. The 25-delta put/call skew, a measure of market sentiment, indicated only a slight bias toward out-of-the-money calls, contrasting sharply with sentiment previously when BTC first breached the $100K mark in December 2024. This lack of exuberance suggests that traders no longer view $100K as a significant inflection point, raising concerns about the sustainability of the rally. 

Meanwhile, funding rates and implied volatility — though still bullish — didn’t reach the extremes observed in earlier months, indicating more cautious market sentiment. The relationship between BTC's spot price and implied volatility suggests that although traders are optimistic, they’re waiting for BTC to approach previous all-time highs before adjusting their volatility expectations.

Ethereum's option data points to further rally

In stark contrast to BTC, Ethereum (ETH) displayed remarkable resilience and outperformed major cryptocurrencies, gaining 23% overnight following favorable trade news. This rally catalyzed a surge in demand for short-dated calls, pushing front-end volatility expectations significantly higher. The response from the derivatives market was robust, inverting the term structure and indicating renewed bullish sentiment toward ETH, even as it’s trading well below its all-time high.

The ETH options market exhibited a shift from neutral to slightly negative skew, to a 10% bias favoring out-of-the-money calls, reflecting the market's confidence in ETH's potential to regain lost ground. Despite overall macroeconomic uncertainty, the demand for ETH options suggests that traders are optimistic about Ether’s future price movements.

In conclusion, April 2025 highlighted the complex interplay between macroeconomic factors and cryptocurrency market dynamics. While BTC faced challenges in eliciting strong responses from derivatives markets upon recrossing the $100K threshold, ETH's performance indicated a divergence in market sentiment. As traders navigate the evolving landscape, the potential for seasonal volatility patterns and the influence of macroeconomic developments will remain critical factors in shaping future market expectations.

Advanced

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Bybit X Block Scholes options volatility report (April 2025): Data suggests Bitcoin rally might not endure, but Ether sees further upside

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 mostly trading sideways at the end of April 2025, a US-UK trade deal sparked a crypto rally. BTC surged past $100K for the first time since February, but it’s ETH's performance that captured the derivatives market's attention. 

A 23% increase in ETH's spot price led to an inverted term structure and a spike in front-end volatility. The put/call skew for ETH shifted from a bearish bias to a nearly 10% skew toward OTM calls. Other sentiment indicators, such as perp funding rates and futures yield, also supported the rally. In contrast, while BTC's funding rates and skew have increased, its implied volatility remains low at 40%, over 30 points below ETH's 7-day implied volatility.

Please check out the report’s highlights.

ETH’s record performance since 2021 was propelled by positive term structure

ETH has significantly outperformed BTC and the top 10 cryptocurrencies, marking its largest single-day gain since May 2021. The options market has reflected this enthusiasm, with implied volatility for short tenors rising sharply and inverting ETH’s term structure, thus contrasting with BTC's muted, positively sloped structure. The 7-day tenor for ETH is now trading at a 33-point premium over that for BTC. 

While puts dominate BTC's open interest, ETH is seeing the opposite trend. On May 8, 2025, options volumes surged over $120M, more than double the typical monthly volume, with $60M more in calls than puts. ETH now boasts a positive futures curve and funding rates, as well as a strong skew toward OTM calls.

ETH sees exceptionally bullish put/call skew

ETH's substantial outperformance in the current crypto rally has led to bullish sentiment in its derivatives markets. Funding rates have surged, futures yields are strongly positive and the put/call skew has shifted significantly toward OTM calls, now close to 10%. This starkly contrasts with early April, when the skew was 20% toward OTM puts. Although ETH has underperformed (relative to BTC and other "ETH killers"), it has rebounded in this rally, with the ETH/BTC ratio rising after spending most of the year declining.

Open interest for Bitcoin options increased, with implied volatility remaining suppressed

The announcement of the new US administration's first trade deal, nearly 30 days into Trump's 90-day tariff pause, jolted crypto markets, pushing BTC back up above $100K. Surprisingly, implied volatility has remained suppressed, failing to invert BTC's term structure, with front-end volatility trading at around an 18-month low of 35-40%. On May 8, 2025, options volumes surged, with call volume reaching $189M, reversing last week's trend of higher put volumes. Meanwhile, open interest rose steadily to exceed $300M, the highest level this month, but remains significantly larger for puts than for calls despite the price increase.

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Bybit X Block Scholes crypto derivatives analytics report (May 9, 2025): Ether’s put/call skew turns remarkably more bullish than Bitcoin’s

This article explores how Sign works, its flagship products (such as TokenTable, SignPass and EthSign), its native token (SIGN) and how to trade SIGN on Bybit.

Sign is an omnichain attestation infrastructure that empowers users and developers to verify real-world claims on-chain. Built for a more transparent and decentralized future, it eliminates the need to “just trust” and enables everyone to verify with cryptographic proof.

This article explores how Sign works, its flagship products (such as TokenTable and EthSign), its native token (SIGN) and how to trade SIGN on Bybit.

 is an omnichain attestation protocol designed to make it easy for anyone to verify the authenticity of any claim — 

. Whether it’s a document, credential or user identity, Sign transforms traditional trust models into verifiable, cryptographic attestations. 

Sign’s mission is to replace outdated, opaque validation systems with transparent, 

 proof — enabling a future where “verify” replaces “trust.” Through tools like schema registries and digital signatures, Sign empowers users to bring accountability and integrity to digital interactions.

Sign is developed by the team behind EthSign, a 

-native e-signature and agreement platform. Its core team brings deep experience in 

 development and cross-chain integrations.

The project is backed by top-tier investors, including Sequoia Capital China (now known as HongShan Capital Group), Mirana Ventures, HashKey Capital and Hack VC.

This strategic funding positions Sign as a foundational layer in the web3 infrastructure stack.

Sign allows users to create attestations — cryptographically signed statements that prove the validity of claims, such as credentials, achievements or actions. These digital proofs can be verified by anyone at any time, making them tamperproof and transparent.

Sign’s key technical elements include a schema registry that ensures consistent data formatting, digital signatures proving authenticity, and on- and off-chain attestations with support for revocation or updates

This system acts like a programmable layer for web3, bringing a new level of trust to identity, credentials and data exchange.

TokenTable is Sign’s flagship token distribution platform. It helps projects unlock, distribute and manage tokens transparently and securely at scale.

It uses Sign’s attestation engine to verify token unlocks, 

 and vesting schedules, ensuring traceable, auditable token flows.

SignPass is a blockchain-based identity solution that brings real-world credentials on-chain. One notable implementation is the Sierra Leone PR Card, used for the world’s first government-approved on-chain permanent residency program.

SignPass offers encrypted on-chain records for easy 

 verification, physical ID issuance for daily identity use and streamlined digital application systems for cross-border access.

It showcases the way blockchain can modernize public sector services worldwide.

EthSign is a decentralized contract signing platform that lets users create, sign and store legally binding agreements directly on-chain. It removes intermediaries and ensures documents are immutable and accessible.

EthSign reinforces Sign’s mission by bringing traditional documentation into the realm of verifiable web3 attestations.

The SIGN token is the native utility token powering the Sign ecosystem. It’s used for:

The total supply is capped at 10 billion SIGN, with 1.2 billion tokens in circulation. While the fully diluted valuation (FDV) sits above $746 million as of May 7, the circulating market cap is approximately $89.6 million. SIGN continues to gain traction across exchanges and developer networks.

SIGN is available for trading on Bybit via Spot trading and as a USDT Perpetual contract. Bybit offers up to 75x leverage for the SIGNUSDT Perpetual contract and supports secure, high-liquidity spot trading.

Start exploring the future of attestations with SIGN on Bybit today.

Intermediate

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Sign (SIGN): Web3 protocol for trustless attestation

Crypto Insights

Enjoy our weekly dose of the market summary below!

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The broader equity market rebounded from last week’s selloff, despite a brewing stagflation risk facing the U.S. economy, and the crypto market fell as Bitcoin failed to break above a key resistance level at $67K. Nonetheless, a few tokens outperformed after launching new features, including Wormhole (W), Automata (ATA), Hedera Hashgraph (HBAR) and Arkham (ARKM).

Another AI Week Despite Lurking Stagflation Risk

NVIDIA's shares rebounded strongly after experiencing a decline last week, as several major clients in the chip industry reaffirmed their commitment to artificial intelligence (AI). The company witnessed a 15% surge in its stock price this week, resulting in a market cap increase of over $290 billion. This performance marks its most successful week since May of last year. The broader equity rally in the past week was fueled by significant AI investments pledged by prominent firms such as Meta, Alphabet and Microsoft.

Regarding economic data, U.S. Q1 GDP growth was reported at an annualized rate of 1.6%, falling short of the consensus expectation of 2.5%. However, inflation has proven to be more significant, as the core PCE deflator rose by 3.7% on an annualized basis, surpassing the expected 3.4%. This suggests that, barring any revisions to the monthly data, tomorrow's core PCE deflator is likely to exceed the current consensus forecast of 0.3% month-on-month (MoM) and come in above 0.4%. As a result, Treasury yields have risen, further diminishing the likelihood of a Federal Reserve near-term interest rate cut.

It’s worth noting that this inflation figure is a quarter-on-quarter annualized measure, and any revisions to data from October through February could have influenced today's outcome. The accuracy of today's report will only be confirmed tomorrow (Apr 29, 2024), when the monthly income and spending report is released. While a 0.3% MoM figure is still possible, it’s important to consider that today's data makes it appear less likely.

In the coming week, employment will become a market focus on Friday, May 3, 2024.

Bitcoin Spot ETF outflows intensified after Wednesday, April 24, 2024, colliding with the price retreat of the broader cryptocurrency. 

W Jumps 16.1% After Wormhole Launches Native Token Transfers 

 (W), launched in 2020, is a cross-chain protocol that facilitates communication and token transfers across more than 30 blockchain networks. Originally a crypto bridge between Solana and Ethereum, it has expanded to include features like the Portal token bridge and messaging protocols, serving as a comprehensive platform for cross-chain interactions. 

Wormhole recently launched Native Token Transfers (NTT)

 to enable seamless transfers of the W token across blockchains such as Solana and Ethereum without needing liquidity pools. This innovation supports Wormhole's introduction of a multichain governance system and W 

, enhancing the token's functionality and security across diverse ecosystems. NTT marks a key step in Wormhole's road map, advancing its commitment to interoperability and decentralized, flexible token usage.

ATA Jumps 8.9% After Automata Launches Multi-Prover AVS on EigenLayer Holesky Testnet

 (ATA), founded in 2019, is a web3 platform providing private web services for 

 (DApps), focusing on secure, anonymous transactions and governance. Key features include a private voting system and 

 minimization to enhance user privacy and security. 

 to enhance security, is now available on the 

 as a secondary security measure in decentralized systems. Operators, restakers and developers are encouraged to learn more about this advancement on Automata’s website.

HBAR Surges by 77.22% Following Archax Adoption

 (HBAR), launched in September 2019, is a cryptocurrency network that supports fast transactions and application deployment, overseen by a select group of business-approved nodes. This design ensures quick finality and reliability, attracting major corporations like LG, IBM and Boeing as participants. 

Archax, a regulated digital asset exchange, has broadened its portfolio by introducing tokenized shares of the BlackRock ICS US Treasury money market fund (MMF) 

 the HBAR Foundation. This addition builds on Archax's earlier offerings of tokenized money market funds, and is facilitated through the 

 digital asset network. This expansion allows for instant transfer of MMF shares, serving a wider range of client needs and merging traditional and crypto financial markets through 

ARKM Rises by 10.08% After Arkham Integrates Manta Pacific for Enhanced Data Analysis

ARKM was one of the top-performing meme coins in March 2024. Its platform, 

, is a crypto intelligence platform founded in 2020 that uses advanced techniques to link blockchain transactions to real-world identities, enhancing transparency and efficiency in the crypto market. 

 is now integrated into its platform, enhancing its crypto intelligence capabilities. Users can access and analyze data from Manta Pacific, including examining addresses and entities, monitoring 

 activities such as bridging, swaps and lending, and setting custom alerts for on-chain activities. 

Additionally, Arkham provides tools to build custom dashboards for tracking entities, tokens and DeFi protocols on Manta Pacific. This integration provides detailed visualizations and real-time monitoring of significant transactions and on-chain volume, further extending Arkham's utility and scope in blockchain analysis.

Aethir Launches Aethir Cloud Drop Campaign

 that’s accessible through various activities, including purchasing 

, engaging on social media, participating in quizzes, referring friends and being part of certain 

/token communities. Eligibility for the airdrop is determined by a badge and quest system. 

Gamium’s New Token Listed on Major Exchanges

, supported by Parachain Ventures, DAO Maker and YouTuber MrBeast, among others, has listed its token, GMM,  on major exchanges with a fully diluted valuation of around $43M. The platform is promoting a beta points airdrop to reward early users. Participants can sign up and earn points through various activities. Details on point earning and distribution are available in a dedicated blog 

, a platform that recently raised $7 million in seed funding, is currently running an 

. Participants can earn XP by trading, which might later be rewarded, potentially through an airdrop. To join, users need to connect their wallets, trade to accumulate XP and track their progress online. 

Additional achievements can be earned by completing specific tasks and minting an 

. This testnet offers various achievement levels (Common, Rare, Epic and Legendary), making it an accessible option for those with limited funds for airdrop interactions.

Stay tuned for more institutional insights and crypto updates next week!

Weekly Institutional Insights — ETF Outflows Strain Bitcoin’s Rebound; Outperforming Tokens: W, ATA, HBAR and ARKM

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