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

Altcoins

Remember the file sharing giant LimeWire? Learn about how it and its LMWR tokens are now the next big thing in the music NFT marketplace scene.

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(NFTs) have catapulted from relative obscurity to soaring popularity. In 2021 alone, trading in NFTs

, increasing 21,200% from 2020. However, many still struggle with understanding the intricacies of NFTs. Newcomers can find it hard to get on board and start creating. LimeWire offers a possible game-changing solution to this problem. In this article, we’ll cover everything you need to know about the LimeWire NFT marketplace and its LMWR token.

LimeWire’s initial plan was to focus solely on music. However, it has since evolved its services to cater to all kinds of content creators, providing them with a platform to grow their fan bases and build recurring revenue streams through their own content.

For the uninitiated, LimeWire was first released on May 3, 2000, as a P2P file-sharing program designed to allow users to upload and download files through desktop software. Users were given access to thousands of MP3,

and JPG files, culminating in tens of millions of users and over $20 million in annual revenue in 2006. The LimeWire software

of all computers in circulation, making it arguably one of the most prominent music and video sharing platforms of the 2000s.

As a result of its growing popularity, the LimeWire platform became a target of lawsuits from the

(Recording Industry Association of America®), bordering on copyright infringement of music by labels RIAA represented. These lawsuits and a further countersuit made by LimeWire resulted in a lengthy legal battle between the two parties from 2006 to 2010. On Oct 26, 2010, a judgment was passed causing LimeWire to cease all operations and deactivate its file distribution functionality. 

LimeWire relaunched in May 2022. This time, however, it specializes in NFTs. With a new LimeWire team on board, and brothers Paul and Julian Zehetmayr at the helm (after buying intellectual property rights to the company), LimeWire was relaunched in hopes of forging a new path. Described as “

,” the Zehetmayr brothers also co-founded Stack Holdings, a Software as a Service (

) company with the primary goal of automating complex processes. 

Now, they aim to position LimeWire as a marketplace accessible even to newbies. The LimeWire management team also includes crypto veterans, many of whom previously worked for the European cryptocurrency exchange

The new LimeWire has taken on a whole new scope, and is nothing like the original LimeWire company of the 2000s. While it has kept its name and domain, the LimeWire NFT marketplace plans to revolutionize digital collectible ownership and trading in the music and entertainment industries.

The Zehetmayr brothers have been planning to bring LimeWire back amidst a fast-moving world of digital collectibles, music and entertainment since they first bought the intellectual property rights to the company in 2021. LimeWire later confirmed on Twitter that the platform would be built into the first genuinely

digital collectibles platform. It’s now available and accessible to just about anybody, both creators and buyers.

The LimeWire NFT marketplace is wired for users to collect, trade and enjoy exclusive content from their favorite creators without worrying about blockchain technicalities. By taking care of

, LimeWire lowers the entry barrier for mainstream users to purchase and trade NFTs.

Instead of competing with existing streaming services, LimeWire provides another channel for creators to create membership-based communities, engage with their loyal fans directly and sell content exclusively. They can even earn royalties each time their content is traded among fans, which helps guarantee that creators will be fairly rewarded for high-performing content. Users can buy and trade music-related assets, such as cover art, unreleased demos, exclusive music releases, artist interviews, backstage content, and music-related digital artwork accompanied by audio or video content.

LimeWire has its own exclusive collection of 10,000

. Holding onto a LimeWire Originals NFT enables you to attend invite-only events and parties organized by LimeWire, earn monthly LMWR rewards, enjoy early access to NFT drops and exclusive access to LimeWire merchandise, and more.

What Are Some of LimeWire's Long-Term Goals?

The LimeWire NFT marketplace hopes to put creators fully in charge of their content, offering them flexibility and control. The company’s vision is to to reach beyond the music industry and become the go-to collectible marketplace for arts and entertainment. 

As compared with the music field, LimeWire believes the film industry is still at an even earlier stage regarding NFTs and sees tremendous potential for filmmakers, producers and studios of every size creating digital collectibles.

If this happens soon, LimeWire intends to become the pioneering marketplace, further expanding its offerings and ecosystem.

Will the LimeWire NFT Marketplace Be Eco-Friendly?

For those wondering about LimeWire's unique selling point as an NFT marketplace, you'll be glad to know that it’s committed to being eco-friendly through its NFT minting process and blockchain provider.

as it burns fossil fuels, coal, natural gas and petroleum for energy use.

on the Ethereum network. Each transaction produced 103.42 kilograms of carbon dioxide and about 47 million tons in carbon emissions as of the end of the year.

In contrast, LimeWire takes a more eco-friendly stance by using

, decentralized blockchain network that’s carbon negative and maintains a lightweight, energy-efficient footprint.

With the Algorand blockchain, users will be able to mint their digital assets to NFTs without having to worry about damaging Earth’s ecosystem. 

LimeWire is poised to become the first genuinely mainstream-ready collectibles platform. This has left many NFT enthusiasts wondering how LimeWire intends to achieve this — and what specifically the company will be doing differently to make sure they deliver.

LimeWire management hopes to make sign-up quick and easy, with straightforward KYC (know your customer) information requirements and U.S. dollar pricing. An average music fan should be able to easily access the platform.

, you need digital currency to carry out transactions. For this reason, OpenSea requires you to have a

, which will then be connected to your OpenSea account. As a newbie, this entire process might be a little overwhelming. 

To solve this problem, LimeWire has created a system that enables you to use a credit card or cryptocurrency such as USDC, BTC, ALGO and ETH to pay for subscriptions. These choices make it easy for beginners, significantly lowering the entry barrier to the collectibles marketplace. 

. As a result, there’s a lot of plagiarized content, and rip-offs of popular projects like the

. Although LimeWire is also advertised as a platform for everyone, the company has measures in place to prevent copyright infringement. LimeWire has said it will either bring artists onboard itself,

that they’re the copyright owners of their music. LimeWire even made a deal with Universal Music Group to license some of its content.

LimeWire offers a vast option of NFTs and gives you the cross-blockchain advantage by bridging its platform with the Ethereum and Polygon blockchains. Solanart, on the other hand, only allows a smaller selection of NFTs as compared to LimeWire — and some of these assets aren’t even recognized across other platforms (aside from Solana).

LimeWire has a total supply of 1 billion tokens. It successfully raised $10.4 million in a private sale of its native token, LMWR, in a round led by Kraken Ventures, Arrington XRP Capital and GSR Ventures. In its recently held public sale, LimeWire raised $17.75 million.

The LimeWire token (LMWR) launched on May 16, 2023 at $0.436892. It soon surged to its all-time high (ATH) price of $0.602655, before declining to its all-time low (ATL) of $0.138545 on May 19, 2023. Despite the drop in price just a few days after its launch, expert analysts from

believe that LMWR’s price will rise to close 2023 at $0.43, surpass its all-time high by 2025 at $0.71 and reach $2.05 by 2030.

Looking to get your hands on LMWR tokens? Bybit now offers the LMWR/USDT Spot trading pair. To get started with trading LMWR, simply

LimeWire's relaunch as an NFT marketplace has redefined how music is created, traded and collected in a way that’s easy and accessible for users. With LimeWire, artists can also retain full control over their music and directly engage with their fans. With prior brand recognition as a former peer-to-peer music service, LimeWire's take on NFTs is poised to take music ownership and trading to the next level. 

LimeWire (LMWR): The NFT Marketplace Rebirth of a File-Sharing Platform

Grab Up to 5,000 USDT in Rewards

Grab Up to 5,000 USDT in Rewards