The price of Bitcoin (BTC) has once again found support at $50,000, but optimism among professional traders is far from the levels seen before the 26% drop to $43,000 on the 28th. February had the upper hand.

The current scenario is far from bearish, but the derivatives indicators do not point to significant purchases by institutional clients including Microstrategy, Meitu and more recently Aker ASA, the Norwegian oil company.

Bitcoin price, USD. Source : TradingView

The longer Bitcoin stays above a certain threshold, the more confident investors become. For example, the last day’s close below $45,000 was 28 days ago. So it may be a few weeks before a more reliable support level is reached. Therefore, it can be uncomfortable for professional traders to take long positions when US government bond yields and the dollar are rising.

Whatever the reasons for BTC’s current comfortable level near $50,000, the price correction that followed the record $58,300 has triggered massive liquidity, which partially explains the recent lack of bullish sentiment among pro-traders.

BTC Futures – Full liquidation. Source : Bybt.com.

This decline led to a fall in prices between the 21st and 25th centuries. Such abrupt movements have important implications for arbitrage transactions, as whales and market makers are required to add guarantees (margin).

Premiums for futures contractsmaintained at a very healthy level

The basis is often called the futures premium and measures the premium of long-term futures contracts relative to the current cash market level.

Fixed futures typically trade at a low price, indicating that sellers charge more money to hold the scheme for longer. In healthy markets, futures contracts trade at a premium of 10% or more per year, also known as contango.

Whenever this indicator disappears or becomes negative, it is a warning sign. This situation is called lagging and indicates that the market is declining.

OKEx 3 month BTC Futures Basis. Source : Skew.com.

The chart above shows that the indicator was 17. The month of February peaked at 35% when Bitcoin broke through the $50,000 resistance. Nevertheless, it remained above 16 percent at $43,000 throughout the correction.

Given the 16% interest rate offered by platforms such as Yearn.finance, Aave and Curve for stable deposits, one would assume that professional traders are neither optimistic nor pessimistic about Bitcoin at the moment.

Biased rising to neutral options

Investors should take a look at the Bitcoin options markets to clarify the state of the trend. Call options allow the buyer to buy the BTC at a fixed price at the expiration date of the contract. Put options, on the other hand, offer buyers insurance and protection against a drop in BTC prices.

Whenever market makers and professional traders lean upwards, they will demand a higher premium for calls. This trend results in a negative delta deviation of 25%.

Options CTB 25% Delta Tilt. Source: laevitas.ch

The 10% negative delta, which occurred before 21… The month of February showed an increase in the protection premium and was considered positive. On the other hand, the recent negative 5% is considered neutral because call and put premiums are roughly balanced.

Some will say that the glass is half full, as the recent surge in BTC prices has not been enough to pique the interest of arbitrage tables and professional traders. However, this skeptical view leaves room for surprises when these whales eventually succumb to the appetite of institutional buyers.

In any case, the fact that derivatives markets have been surprisingly resilient in the recent 26% drop to test $43,000 is a positive.

The views and opinions expressed herein are those of the author only and do not necessarily reflect the views of Cointelegraph. Every investment and every stage of trading involves risk. You should do your own research when you make your decision.

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