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

The U.S. presidential election is creating a volatility premium for options expiring after Nov 5, 2024. While longer-term volatility smiles have consistently favored out-of-the-money (OTM) calls, short-term options have recently mirrored this trend. This suggests that the decline in spot prices at the end of September hasn’t significantly dampened sentiment in the derivatives markets.

Please check out some of the report’s highlights.

Futures Activities Subdued After Month-End Expiration

Spot price volatility leading up to the Sep 27, 2024 futures expiration resulted in the highest trading volumes in futures contracts in over a month. This surge was primarily focused on BTC contracts, reflecting a trend we've seen throughout much of the market's recent history. The expiration of a substantial quarterly contract at the end of September caused a decline in open interest, as not all traders opted to roll their positions into later expirations. Consequently, futures activity is currently much lower compared to that in perpetual swap markets.

While the expiration of the September contract led to a significant drop in futures open interest, the effect on perpetual swap contract markets was comparatively mild. Although we observed a decline in perpetual open interest at the end of the month, this was likely due to the closure of long positions as spot prices retreated toward the lower end of their recent range. 

This shift halts an upward trend in open interest that had been approaching all-time highs, but it doesn’t indicate a major decline — especially considering the high trading volumes recorded over the last two days of the month.

BTC ATM Implied Volatility Falls Sharply Since Fed Rate Cut

Positioning in BTC options markets continues to be heavily influenced by the U.S. election narrative. This is most evident in the term structure, which indicates significantly higher volatility expectations following the election, while short-term options are trading at much lower levels. The rise in implied volatility for these shorter tenors contrasts with the recent decline in actual volatility, which has reached lows for the month as spot prices remain relatively stable. 

Over the past week, trade volumes have mirrored this shifting sentiment, showing similar activity in both puts and calls. However, neither trade volumes nor open interest levels have surpassed recent figures, reflecting the range-bound nature of BTC spot prices, which remain influenced by broader macroeconomic factors.

Advanced

BlockSholves X Bybit Tech Report

Bybit X Block Scholes Crypto Derivatives Analytics Report (Oct 2, 2024): Positive Sentiment Persists Following Recent Decline in Spot Prices

Sui has made history as the first blockchain to adopt SCION, a secure alternative to the Border Gateway Protocol (BGP), which protects against Internet routing attacks.

The SPX index was up by 0.01%, with energy, technology, and financial sectors performing well, while consumer discretionary, staples, and communication services lagging. Geopolitical tensions in the Middle East also remained in focus. Coindesk Indices, an index measuring broader cryptocurrency market performance was down by 1.56%, with Bitcoin and Ether dropping by 2.48% and by 2.65%, respectively in the past 24 hours.

Today's top performer is W, which surged 10.1% following the launch of Wormholescan v2, featuring enhanced multichain data and developer tools.

Wormhole (W), launched in 2020, is a cross-chain protocol that facilitates communication and token transfers across over 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. 

, providing enhanced real-time multichain data for the Wormhole ecosystem. New features include token, chain, and protocol analysis, a governor dashboard, a dedicated analytics page, and a developer section with a VAA parser. Users can explore these updates at 

Check Out the Latest Prices, Charts, and Data of 

Sui has made history as the first blockchain to adopt SCION, a secure alternative to the Border Gateway Protocol (BGP), which protects against Internet routing attacks. SCION addresses security flaws in BGP that have led to significant problems on other networks by preventing malicious traffic rerouting. With SCION, Sui enhances network resilience, safeguards validators from hijacking and DDoS attacks, and boosts performance with reduced latency. This integration solidifies Sui's position as a top blockchain for secure, critical infrastructure applications, maintaining 100% uptime since launching its mainnet.

Yesterday, the total flow for BTC spot ETFs was -$39.2 million, with no flow for GBTC and a negative flow of $39.2 million for non-GBTC ETFs.

, allowing users to earn test XTM and Gems. To participate, users need to download the app via the provided link, install it, and mine tXTM to earn 25 Gems per 1 tXTM mined. More Gems lead to a larger Tari airdrop.

Beginner

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Sui Integrates SCION to Pioneer Blockchain Security Against Internet Routing Attacks

Eigenpie (EGP) is the ETH liquid restaking platform on EigenLayer enabling ETH and LST holders to earn rewards from multiple protocols while maintaining liquidity through liquid restaking tokens (LRTs).

, token holders are required to lock away their tokens for a long time through the 

 (PoS) consensus mechanism on the platform. While this structure helps keep the network liquid and secure, it’s a bit rigid regarding capital efficiency.

To counter this limitation, liquid staking protocols such as 

, which allows staked ETH to be used for other 

 (DeFi) activities, earning token holders extra rewards by issuing liquid staking tokens (LSTs).

However, liquid staking only allows assets to be staked in a single PoS blockchain. This limitation has led to the development of 

. It allows you to use staked assets to secure and earn rewards from multiple protocols through the use of 

One of the liquid restaking protocols operating on EigenLayer is Eigenpie, which lets you stake your staked assets to node operators in exchange for LRTs so you can earn rewards.

Let's examine Eigenpie more closely to see how it’s shaping the liquid restacking narrative in the DeFi ecosystem.

Eigenpie is a liquid restaking protocol within the EigenLayer ecosystem that allows you to earn passive income from both Ethereum staking and EigenLayer restaking while maintaining your assets’ liquidity through the use of LRTs. 

 ecosystem, Eigenpie aims to provide more utility for ETH holders in line with the broader vision of EigenLayer via liquid restaking.

As a native ETH holder or liquid staking participant, you can deposit your assets on Eigenpie, which then restakes them to node validators on EigenLayer. The node validators will then use these assets to power new 

 (AVS) on EigenLayer, allowing you as a token holder to earn extra rewards while maintaining liquid positions. Eigenpie has integrated with various DeFi platforms that let you use your LRTs to explore other yield-earning DeFi opportunities while accumulating Eigenpie points that qualify you for the EGP 

EigenLayer is an Ethereum restaking protocol designed to enhance the capital efficiency of your staked ETH by restaking it across different protocols. As a support layer for the Ethereum network, EigenLayer has a set of node validators who temporarily stake assets and verify transactions securely. Users who delegate their tokens to these node validators receive LRTs, which earn them rewards without unlocking their staked positions.

EigenLayer operates a system of AVS that allows projects such as sidechains, 

 to connect to its liquid restaking token protocols in order to secure their platforms without running full nodes.

As a novel isolated liquid restaking platform of EigenLayer, Eigenpie’s distinctive features include the following.

Eigenpie offers an innovative approach to liquid restaking by offering isolated liquid restaking tokens exclusive to a particular ETH LST. This isolates the risk to only the specific token staked on Eigenpie, and not any other ETH LST’s performance. This feature not only ensures that liquid restaking on Eigenpie is security-focused, but also offers an optimal restaking experience, especially to risk-averse LST holders. Below is a chart with the isolated liquid restaking tokens available on Eigenpie.

Eigenpie also offers isolated native restaking in collaboration with 

, an open-source ETH staking network that uses 

 (SSV) technology to create a decentralized and secure environment for ETH staking by splitting a validator key into several keyshares, which are distributed to multiple nodes. The isolated native restaking feature on Eigenpie allows ETH holders to connect their ETH to the website and restake it through a simple user interface. Once it’s restaked, ETH holders receive egETH tokens that earn them 2x Eigenpie points, resulting in better yields over time.

Eigenpie Enterprise, a restaking feature on Eigenpie designed for institutional grade investors, 

 that are designed to accommodate different enterprises, depending upon their needs.

The first version allows enterprises to participate in native restaking, liquid restaking and DeFi protocols only within the Eigenpie ecosystem in order to reduce their risk of bad debt. Meanwhile, the second version enables institutions to expand their positions from their existing EigenLayer holdings into the Eigenpie Institution Node Delegator, which opens them to more DeFi opportunities since they can deposit their LRTs in their preferred DeFi platform.

Eigenpie Token (EGP) is the governance and reward-earning 

 on Eigenpie. It's designed to ensure the sustainability and long-term success of Eigenpie as a restaking platform. As an EGP holder, you can lock your tokens to receive vlEGP tokens (at a 1:1 ratio) that can then be used to participate in Eigenpie's governance, and to earn rewards for active participation in the ecosystem. 

 EGP has a total supply of 10 million tokens, distributed as shown below:

Eigenpie's airdrop is reserved for holders who accumulate Eigenpie points through user engagement, and for 

 users from Binance and OKX. To accumulate Eigenpie points, users need to remain active on the platform by depositing LSTs. In short, 1 ETH worth of LST deposits on the platform earns you one point per hour. You can also earn points through referral, whereby your additional points are proportionate to the points earned by your referee.

You can buy EGP on Bybit's Spot trading platform. The token is listed as the 

 trading pair. Trading EGP on Bybit's user-friendly terminal is fast and efficient, and comes with 24-hour multilingual customer support.

The liquid restaking concept in cryptocurrency continues to proliferate, since it provides capital-efficient utility for ETH holders. Since Eigenpie is a top protocol on EigenLayer, ETH and LST holders can leverage its features, such as isolated liquid restaking and native restaking, to earn additional passive income from their staked assets.

Furthermore, institutional enterprises can leverage Eigenpie’s platform to access a wide range of DeFi opportunities by using their staked assets. The protocol offers liquid restaking services, and is thus timely as investors continue to explore DeFi opportunities in the crypto market.

Intermediate

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Eigenpie (EGP): ETH Liquid Restaking Powered by EigenLayer

Mumu the Bull is a meme coin built on the Solana blockchain. Learn more about how it works in this article.

 are two of the most iconic. Of the two imposing quadrupeds used to describe general market trends, almost everyone hopes for a bull market, in which prices soar. The crypto project known as Mumu the Bull has taken this classic concept and turned it into a 

. By combining internet trends from around the globe, Mumu the Bull hopes to create the next big thing. Is Mumu the Bull popular right now, and will its price increase in the future? Explore this guide to find out.

 blockchain. Its marketing ties together cartoon animal imagery, similarly to 

, with crypto memes about bull markets. This coin is also known for its competition with the Bobo the Bear meme coin.

According to Mumu the Bull’s creators, the coin’s primary goals are to unite the crypto world by including references to several beloved memes within the crypto universe, and to encourage countless users to trade its coin. In addition to references to bull and bear markets, Mumu the Bull endeavors to capitalize on familiarity with Pepe the Frog meme coins. It uses similar art and occasionally includes cartoon frogs in its memes. Eventually, 

 it will be able to use these playful references to become "the meme coin to rule them all." 

Some crypto investors also believe that Mumu the Bull can function as a market sentiment tracker. Its creators have set up Mumu the Bull to compete with Bobo the Bear. Therefore, some users hope that they’ll be able to predict a bull-vs.-bear crypto market by considering which of the two cryptos has a higher price and/or trading volume.

The Mumu the Bull meme coin project is built on the Solana blockchain. Thus, instead of running its own ledger, it uses the underlying security of Solana to validate and track each transaction. While Solana handles the back end, Mumu the Bull's team is focused on promoting the token. They’ve created multiple social media sites, and spend a lot of time generating memes and artwork surrounding the coin. This allows them to get their coin into the public consciousness, so more crypto enthusiasts will be interested in buying it.

 that automatically removes 0.25% of tokens from the liquidity pool for each sale that’s made. This has resulted in a current total supply of 2.324 trillion tokens. Of the total supply, 95% has been allocated toward liquidity. These tokens quickly ended up being bought and sold on the open market. The remaining 5% of tokens were distributed to the Mumu the Bull team to compensate them for their work.

Initially, the MUMU token struggled to gain attention after its release, trading at roughly $0.000005. However, several months after its launch, Mumu the Bull took the crypto world by storm. Prices suddenly doubled, and then doubled again. By Jul 29, 2024, MUMU had reached an all-time high (ATH) of $0.00012. 

Despite a drop in price from its ATH, Mumu the Bull has still managed to retain popularity. MUMU is currently within the 

 by market cap and among the top 500 cryptocurrencies overall. Furthermore, MUMU’s 24-hour trading volume is $9.87 million (as of Oct 2, 2024), and its price is still up, roughly 1,257% from its ATL. 

This pricing history reveals a lot about the popularity of Mumu the Bull. Instead of following the trend of many meme coins, with a brief spike in interest followed by obscurity, Mumu the Bull has experienced a slow yet steady rise in trading. This coin has gone from an underrated novelty to an iconic meme coin in the 2024 market. Particularly when the market is dealing with bull conditions, Mumu the Bull is trading very well.

MUMU tokens are primarily available through 

 (DEXs). The creators of Mumu the Bull suggest that people purchase MUMU by purchasing Solana tokens, and then swapping Solana for MUMU tokens on a DEX. 

However, if you prefer a more convenient way to invest in MUMU, consider purchasing Mumu the Bull tokens as a Perpetual contract. To get started, you’ll first need to create a Bybit account, then fund it with cryptocurrency and navigate to the 

If you're looking for a diverse portfolio filled with meme coins, the MUMU token is a promising option. Its price is currently low enough that it's not overinflated, yet it's still seeing a lot of trading activity. Thanks to its proximity to the Pepe the Frog universe, Mumu the Bull seems likely to keep its audience interested for some time.

However, this probably isn't a meme coin that's going to turn anyone into a millionaire overnight. While it's performing reasonably well, nothing about the coin indicates an imminent drastic increase in value. It's likely to undergo both small price increases and decreases in the future. Due to the inherent volatility of meme coins, investors need to exercise some caution when purchasing Mumu the Bull. Never overextend yourself financially, and make sure you 

Ultimately, Mumu the Bull is a promising addition to the world of meme coins. By focusing on classic memes about market conditions, it's managed to attract an audience and increase its prices. However, Mumu the Bull has a lot of competition, so only time will tell if this token can become a top meme coin.

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Mumu the Bull (MUMU): A Symbol of the Bull Run Moovement

Bybit Learn

DeFi

Learn what a sandwich attack is in crypto, how attackers manipulate transactions on decentralized exchanges, and the key steps to protect yourself from this exploit.

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 (DEXs) offer crypto traders numerous opportunities and distinct advantages. At the same time, these platforms often attract malicious actors intent on causing harm and deriving profit at the expense of unsuspecting fellow traders. While 

 are often mentioned when discussing the unique threats on decentralized trading platforms, another type of malicious attack — a sandwich attack — gets far less attention.

In the most standard form of sandwich attack, a trader with sinister motives identifies a pending swap transaction on a blockchain and places two orders — one before and one after the targeted transaction — to manipulate the asset price. The culprit's goal is to buy the asset before the expected price increase, and then quickly sell it after the price inflation. The victim of the attack ends up purchasing the asset at the inflated price and then watches helplessly as its price plummets afterward.

Sandwich attacks — while less publicized than some other security vulnerabilities in the world of 

 (DeFi) — can still be devastating for traders who fall victim to these exploits. A trader unaware of being targeted by such an attack may quickly lose significant funds and get wiped out, especially if they actively place orders during the attack phase. 

The good news is that there are several measures that traders can implement to minimize the probability of becoming “filling” for the attacker's breakfast sandwich. In this article, we’re taking a closer look at sandwich attacks, their two main varieties and the key ways to avoid them.

A sandwich attack is a type of malicious transaction on DEX platforms whereby the attacker identifies a pending swap operation and places one order before and another right after the targeted transaction in order to manipulate the asset's price. 

The malicious trader "sandwiches" the pending transaction by simultaneously front-running and back-running it, hence the name. Their goal is to buy the asset chosen by the unsuspecting trader at a lower price, and then sell it immediately after their back-running transaction.

As a result of the sandwich attack, the victim buys the asset at an inflated price as compared to the expected execution price. After the back-run transaction, the asset price declines, and the victim ends up with an asset valued lower than what they paid for it. Depending upon the victim's trading volume and activity, losses from a sandwich attack — or a series of them — can be devastating. These attacks are pretty common on DEXs, although they receive less coverage than other forms of exploit, such as flash loan attacks.

Sandwich attacks can be considered a form of 

. However, unlike some other forms of arbitrage, these attacks directly harm traders who fall victim to them. The sandwich attacker intentionally manipulates the price — both before and after the victim's transaction — in order to profit at the victim's expense. As such, these attacks are nothing other than malicious market manipulation, and are widely condemned in the DeFi community.

Technically speaking, sandwich attacks are possible on decentralized trading platforms due to the public nature of blockchains. Every public blockchain keeps its pending transactions in the 

 area, a waiting room for transactions before they’re finally written to the blockchain's permanent ledger of records. Attackers are actively looking in the mempool for transactions that provide good potential for these exploits.

Let's consider how a typical sandwich attack might occur in practice. 

Let’s say a trader decides to place a swap order on an 

. A sandwich attacker spots the victim's transaction in the pending list, and quickly places a buy order for ETH, trying to get their own front-running transaction executed first. Due to the nature of blockchain technology, there are ways for the attacker to achieve this (for example by paying a higher gas fee to raise their own transaction's priority). By having their own transaction executed first, the attacker takes advantage of ETH's lower price. As a result of the buy order, the price of ETH in the trading pool increases.

Therefore, when the victim's order for swapping USDT for ETH goes through, the actual execution price differs from what they had hoped for — and ETH now costs more, so the victim receives the asset at an inflated price. The culprit also schedules another transaction, to be executed quickly after the victim's transaction. In this back-running transaction, the culprit sells ETH at the inflated price and pockets the profit. As a result of the sell transaction, ETH's price drops, and the victim now owns an asset valued lower than what they paid for it.

There are two main types of sandwich attacks. The most common one is the taker vs. taker scenario. Typically, sandwich attackers use 

 at AMMs to carry out their attacks. In the taker vs. taker scenario, swap operations are executed against the pool and the setup is as described above, with the malicious taker trying to manipulate asset prices by placing both a front-running transaction and a back-running transaction around the victim's order.

Attackers also use a modification of the standard sandwich attack by acting as 

. While liquidity takers attack using two transactions, attackers execute three orders in the liquidity provider vs. taker mode. 

In the first order, the culprit removes liquidity from the swap pool as a front-running method, increasing the 

 rates for the victim's order. In the second transaction, they execute the back-running method by adding the liquidity back to restore the initial pool balance. Finally, they swap the targeted asset — in our example above, ETH for the original asset, and USDT to restore the asset balance in the pool to the way it was before the attack.

By removing liquidity before the taker's trade, the liquidity provider avoids paying a commission fee (which is normally shared between all liquidity providers). This means the taker has to pay more, due to increased slippage, while the liquidity provider keeps their cut of the commission.

) are taking protective measures against sandwich attacks by introducing transactions that aren't visible in the mempool. Some platforms also protect users against 

 (maximal extractable value) bots, a type of bot frequently used in sandwich attacks. However, any DeFi trader should also take their own precautionary measures to minimize the risk of falling victim to these attacks. Below, we list some proactive ways you can use to avoid your funds becoming a succulent sandwich filling in a malicious attack.

Slippage rates are the difference between the expected and actual cost of a swap transaction on decentralized protocols. Many DEX platforms allow you to set acceptable slippage rates for your swap trades. Use this option actively, as the price slippage aspect features prominently in sandwich attacks (particularly in the liquidity provider vs. taker variation).

Larger liquidity pools are less affected by sandwich attacks, thanks to their having ample funds floating around. The smaller the pool you use, the more pronounced the price swings caused by sandwich attacks — and more extreme price swings will mean one very unpleasant thing: larger losses from these attacks. 

Note, however, that sandwich attackers are most active on large DEXs, such as 

 (SUSHI). Therefore, it's less about the size of the platform and more about liquidity volumes in a specific pool. Sandwich attackers love low-liquidity pools at large DEXs. Thus, don't be deceived by a platform's large industry footprint or reputation. Pay close attention to the actual liquidity levels typically available in the pool you're interested in.

 may be helpful, as they distribute a single trade across multiple liquidity pools, which can mitigate the impact of sandwich attacks by reducing the likelihood that a single pool is targeted. Additionally, as DEX aggregators aim to execute more efficient trades, you’re more likely to experience lower slippage when using them.

One of the key ways sandwich attackers carry out their sinister trade is by paying higher 

 on a blockchain. By doing so, they often ensure (though never guarantee) that their front-running transaction will be executed before the victim's trade. You can reduce your vulnerability to these attacks by paying a higher gas fee to have your transaction processed by miners before the malicious front-running order is executed.

 (CEXs), including Bybit, are immune from sandwich attacks, as this type of attack is unique to DEXs. While the measures above may minimize (though never eliminate) the risk of such attacks, conducting your trades on a CEX is the only reliable way to completely avoid the possibility of becoming prey to sandwich attackers.

Sandwich attacks exploit the inherently asynchronous nature of transaction ordering on blockchain. While not as high-profile as prominent flash loan attacks, they are ubiquitous on DEXs and cost traders dearly. Luckily, there are several ways to minimize the potential threat from these attacks. By tightly controlling your slippage rates, using larger liquidity pools, paying higher gas fees to elevate the priority of your orders and using CEX platforms, you can significantly reduce the risk of falling victim to sandwich attacks.

What Is a Sandwich Attack in Crypto and How to Protect Against It

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