Let me explain why Bitcoin is stuck in this range right now. No matter how much people try to push the price up, $BTC keeps moving between $85,000 and $90,000. This isn’t random, and it’s not because traders are weak. There’s a clear reason behind it. $BTC
The key issue is options positioning.
Right now, Bitcoin is sitting near a critical options reversal zone around $88,000. Above this level, market makers are forced to sell when price goes up and buy when price goes down. This behavior naturally limits any strong rebound and pulls the price back toward the middle of the range.
Below $88,000, the situation changes completely. Selling pressure starts reinforcing itself, volatility increases, and price movements become sharper instead of being absorbed. That’s why Bitcoin keeps getting pushed back into the same zone again and again.
Now let’s talk about why $90,000 keeps rejecting price.
There is a heavy concentration of call options at $90K, and many of these calls are shorted. Whenever Bitcoin approaches this level, traders are forced to hedge by selling spot BTC. What people think is “natural selling pressure” is actually forced selling due to hedging. That’s why every attempt to break above $90K fails.
On the other side, $85,000 acts like a strong floor.
There is a large amount of put option exposure at this level. As price drops toward $85K, traders hedge by buying spot Bitcoin, which is why every dip gets bought quickly. This creates a tight and seemingly stable range — but in reality, it’s extremely fragile.
The most important part here is timing.
A massive amount of options exposure expires on January 30, 2026, the last Friday of the month. Once these options expire, the artificial forces holding price in this range will disappear. Not because sentiment changes overnight, but because the hedging pressure simply stops existing.
This same setup has accurately signaled major market tops before — including Bitcoin’s all-time high in October.
Watch this level closely.
Things are about to change.
