01 · Executive summary
What changed across the BTC volatility surface.
Front-end ATM IV increased, averaging +0.85 volatility points across 1W, 2W and 1M.
Long-dated ATM IV was broadly unchanged, averaging -0.02 volatility points across 6M and 1Y.
RR25 moved towards puts, averaging -1.18 volatility points across the six headline tenors.
BF25 increased, averaging +0.24 volatility points across the six headline tenors.
The largest standard-tenor ATM IV move was +1.82 volatility points at 1W.
Universe roll: added 20MAY26; removed 16MAY26. Comparisons use common expiries only.
02 · Standard-tenor ranking
Largest surface events
Largest eligible smile rotation
19MAY26, -6.83 vol ptsLargest standard-tenor ATM IV move
1W, +1.82 vol ptsLargest standard-tenor RR25 move
1M, -1.72 vol ptsLargest standard-tenor BF25 move
2W, +0.43 vol ptsLargest eligible SVI sigma move
5JUN26, -0.1916 paramLargest eligible SVI rho move
25SEP26, +0.1343 param03 · ATM volatility
Standard-tenor ATM implied volatility.
| Tenor | Current (vol %) | Previous (vol %) | Change (vol pts) | Relative change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1W | 35.75 | 33.93 | +1.82 vol pts | +5.36% |
| 2W | 36.21 | 35.62 | +0.59 vol pts | +1.66% |
| 1M | 37.28 | 37.15 | +0.13 vol pts | +0.35% |
| 3M | 39.23 | 39.12 | +0.11 vol pts | +0.28% |
| 6M | 42.13 | 42.18 | -0.05 vol pts | -0.12% |
| 9M | 43.62 | 43.69 | -0.07 vol pts | -0.16% |
| 1Y | 44.31 | 44.30 | +0.01 vol pts | +0.02% |
04 · Risk reversals
RR25 skew moved most at 1M.
RR25 moved towards puts, averaging -1.18 volatility points across the six headline tenors. Negative RR25 denotes a richer 25-delta put wing under the call-minus-put convention.
| Tenor | Current (vol %) | Previous (vol %) | Change (vol pts) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1W | -5.81 | -4.88 | -0.93 vol pts |
| 2W | -7.22 | -5.69 | -1.53 vol pts |
| 1M | -7.35 | -5.63 | -1.72 vol pts |
| 3M | -6.55 | -5.08 | -1.47 vol pts |
| 6M | -5.61 | -4.76 | -0.85 vol pts |
| 9M | -5.12 | -4.45 | -0.67 vol pts |
| 1Y | -4.75 | -4.18 | -0.57 vol pts |
05 · Butterflies
BF25 convexity changed most at 2W.
BF25 increased, averaging +0.24 volatility points across the six headline tenors. BF25 measures the average 25-delta wing premium over ATM IV.
| Tenor | Current (vol %) | Previous (vol %) | Change (vol pts) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1W | 2.21 | 1.84 | +0.37 vol pts |
| 2W | 2.38 | 1.95 | +0.43 vol pts |
| 1M | 2.57 | 2.21 | +0.36 vol pts |
| 3M | 2.49 | 2.30 | +0.19 vol pts |
| 6M | 2.53 | 2.38 | +0.15 vol pts |
| 9M | 2.44 | 2.39 | +0.05 vol pts |
| 1Y | 2.33 | 2.36 | -0.03 vol pts |
06 · Expiry effects
Near-settlement moves, shown with context.
Contracts with fewer than 2 full days to expiry remain in the tables but are excluded from headline rankings. Settlement proximity, time decay, changing liquidity and fewer quotes can exaggerate their changes.
Smile rotation
17MAY26, -28.81 vol ptsSmile rotation
18MAY26, -10.28 vol pts07 · Volatility term structure
Today against the previous 24-hour snapshot.
The ATM chart above is the standard-tenor term structure. The listed-expiry table below preserves the exchange maturity detail underneath those interpolated tenors.
| Expiry | Time left | Forward now (USD) | Forward change (USD) | ATM IV now | ATM IV change | RR25 change | BF25 change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17MAY26Expiry effect | 0.3 days | 78,141.1 | -925.67 USD | 23.50% | +7.06 vol pts | -4.04 vol pts | -0.46 vol pts |
| 18MAY26Expiry effect | 1.3 days | 78,127.95 | -927.12 USD | 31.48% | +7.42 vol pts | -1.12 vol pts | -0.46 vol pts |
| 19MAY26 | 2.3 days | 78,128.53 | -939.02 USD | 32.52% | +3.79 vol pts | -1.37 vol pts | +0.31 vol pts |
| 22MAY26 | 5.3 days | 78,126.87 | -935.65 USD | 35.60% | +2.02 vol pts | -0.42 vol pts | +0.36 vol pts |
| 29MAY26 | 12.3 days | 78,142.7 | -930.38 USD | 35.95% | +0.47 vol pts | -1.10 vol pts | +0.30 vol pts |
| 5JUN26 | 19.3 days | 78,147.41 | -949.40 USD | 36.74% | +0.25 vol pts | -2.35 vol pts | +0.69 vol pts |
| 26JUN26 | 40.3 days | 78,217.11 | -957.28 USD | 37.53% | 0.00 vol pts | -1.44 vol pts | +0.18 vol pts |
| 31JUL26 | 75.3 days | 78,375.95 | -961.65 USD | 38.53% | +0.05 vol pts | -1.79 vol pts | +0.21 vol pts |
| 25SEP26 | 131.3 days | 78,759.05 | -964.03 USD | 40.25% | +0.10 vol pts | -1.05 vol pts | +0.17 vol pts |
| 25DEC26 | 222.3 days | 79,464.2 | -987.38 USD | 42.98% | -0.17 vol pts | -0.77 vol pts | +0.15 vol pts |
| 26MAR27 | 313.3 days | 80,127.2 | -991.20 USD | 43.97% | -0.04 vol pts | -0.62 vol pts | +0.02 vol pts |
08 · Smile movement
Reconstructed SVI smiles for every common expiry.
Each overlay uses the stored five-parameter SVI fit and the snapshot-specific time to expiry. Ultra-short expiries are displayed but do not determine the headline ranking.
Surface movement heatmap
Each cell is the fitted IV change in volatility points. Rows are listed expiries; columns run from the put wing through ATM to the call wing.
09 · SVI diagnostics
Daily movement in a, b, rho, m and sigma.
Among ranking-eligible expiries, the largest absolute rho change occurred at 25SEP26; the largest sigma change occurred at 5JUN26.
| Expiry | Δ a | Δ b | Δ rho | Δ m | Δ sigma | Smile classification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17MAY26 | -0.06420 | +0.03320 | -0.09800 | -0.09980 | +0.66350 | rotation towards puts, wing steepening |
| 18MAY26 | -0.03810 | +0.03280 | -0.13310 | -0.07940 | +0.35270 | rotation towards puts, wing flattening |
| 19MAY26 | +0.00480 | -0.00280 | -0.08700 | -0.03000 | -0.03470 | rotation towards puts, wing steepening |
| 22MAY26 | +0.00240 | +0.00400 | -0.01020 | -0.00930 | -0.04120 | rotation towards puts, wing steepening |
| 29MAY26 | 0.00000 | +0.00590 | +0.00520 | +0.00300 | -0.02740 | rotation towards puts, wing steepening |
| 5JUN26 | +0.03530 | -0.00550 | -0.04060 | -0.00650 | -0.19160 | rotation towards puts, wing steepening |
| 26JUN26 | -0.04730 | +0.03770 | +0.03880 | +0.04220 | +0.10350 | rotation towards puts |
| 31JUL26 | -0.01360 | +0.01810 | +0.11350 | +0.12090 | -0.01940 | rotation towards puts |
| 25SEP26 | -0.03960 | +0.02710 | +0.13430 | +0.13540 | +0.04280 | rotation towards puts |
| 25DEC26 | +0.01640 | +0.00310 | +0.04450 | +0.07440 | -0.08540 | rotation towards puts |
| 26MAR27 | -0.01220 | +0.00800 | +0.02720 | +0.06140 | -0.00420 | limited movement |
10 · Current surface characteristics
Where normalized model Greek intensity is highest.
These are comparable Black-forward Greeks for a one-BTC ATM-forward call at each listed expiry—not portfolio exposure, open interest or a prediction of dealer positioning.
11 · Methodology and provenance
Generated from measured Derivasys surface data.
- Current snapshot
- 16 May 2026, 23:59 UTC
- Comparison snapshot
- 15 May 2026, 23:59 UTC
- Source
- Derivasys proprietary historical SVI surface database
- Comparison window
- Nearest successful surface snapshots approximately 24 hours apart
- RR convention
- 25-delta call IV minus 25-delta put IV
- BF convention
- Average 25-delta wing IV minus ATM forward IV
- Fixed tenors
- Fixed-tenor measures are interpolated independently at 1W, 2W, 1M, 3M, 6M, 9M and 1Y; headline rankings prioritise 1W, 2W, 1M, 3M, 6M and 1Y.
- Smile reconstruction
- Listed-expiry smiles are reconstructed from stored SVI total-variance parameters on a fixed log-moneyness grid.
- Ultra-short expiries
- Expiries with fewer than 2 full days remaining stay in detailed tables but are excluded from headline rankings. Settlement proximity, time decay, changing liquidity and fewer quotes can exaggerate their changes.
- Greek normalization
- Black forward Greeks for a normalized one-BTC ATM-forward call, zero rate, fitted SVI IV
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