Linear USDC Options on Deribit are European options, priced and settled in USDC.
European style options are exercised only at expiry and cannot be exercised before. On Deribit, this will happen automatically at expiry. (Though the options are only exercised at expiry, traders are free to close their positions before expiry in the open market.)
At expiry, in the money (ITM) options are first physically settled into a futures contract at the strike price of the option. That futures contract then immediately settles into USDC cash. The net financial result for the trader — the amount received or paid, and the currency it is settled in — is identical to a direct cash settlement. Although the options now physically settle into futures, from the trader’s perspective they can still be thought of as cash settled.
The options are priced in USDC. Additionally, the implied volatility of the option’s price is also displayed on the platform.
A call option is the right to buy the underlying asset at a specific price (the strike price), and a put option is the right to sell the underlying asset at a specific price (the strike price). At expiry, only the intrinsic value of the option is settled.
Altcoin options also typically have a contract multiplier, meaning each contract represents a certain amount of the underlying currency. More info on this below.
From early April 2026, linear (USDC) options are settling via a two-step process rather than directly into cash. Any ITM option is first physically settled into a futures contract at the strike price, and that futures contract then cash settles into USDC. Out of the money (OTM) options are unaffected — they expire worthless as before.
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Additional futures contracts are listed alongside options, one for each option expiry date. These new futures are listed at the same time as the first option contracts for each expiry.
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At the moment of expiry, ITM options generate two entries in the transaction log: an entry physically settling the option into the relevant futures contract (at the strike price), followed by a delivery entry for that futures contract settling into USDC.
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OTM options that expire worthless show an "expiry" type in the transaction log instead of a delivery entry.
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Any existing position on the relevant expiry future nets off against the option-generated position just before expiry. This can reduce delivery fees if there is an offsetting futures position.
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The settlement currency for all instruments remains USDC.
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The expiration price is still calculated as the 30-minute TWAP of the index leading into expiry, so the profit or loss of any option position is exactly the same as before.
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A delivery fee is still paid on an ITM option when it physically settles into futures. The futures position generated by that physical settlement does not incur an additional delivery fee — there is no double payment for the same position.
The usual delivery fee applies to an ITM option at the moment it physically settles into futures. The futures position created by this physical settlement does not itself attract an additional delivery fee.
However, if the option-generated futures position offsets or reduces an existing position on the expiry future, the delivery fee for the remaining futures position will be correspondingly lower — or zero if the position reverses direction. This means traders will either pay exactly the same delivery fees as before, or pay slightly less. The net financial result of the change is that a trader will either see no change, or will be slightly better off.
A trader is long one BTC_USDC call option with a strike price of $100,000. At expiry the expiration price is $125,000.
Old method: A delivery entry settles the $25,000 USDC intrinsic value of the option directly into the cash balance.
New method: First, an entry physically settles the option into a BTC_USDC futures contract — one BTC of futures is purchased with an entry price of $100,000 (the strike price). Next, a delivery entry settles the $25,000 USDC profit from the futures contract into the cash balance.
In both cases the cash balance increases by $25,000 USDC and the total delivery fee is the same, as there was no pre-existing futures position to offset.
A trader is long one BTC_USDC put option with a strike price of $80,000, and also holds a long BTC_USDC futures position of 0.5 BTC on the expiring future (entry price $80,000). At expiry the expiration price is $70,000.
Old method: A delivery entry for the option settles the $10,000 USDC intrinsic value into the cash balance. A separate delivery entry for the future settles the $5,000 USDC loss into the cash balance. Net result: +$5,000 USDC. Delivery fee is calculated on a combined position size of 1.5 BTC.
New method: First, an entry physically settles the put option — 1 BTC of futures is sold at $80,000 (the strike price). This nets off against the existing 0.5 BTC long, resulting in a 0.5 BTC short. Next, a delivery entry for the 0.5 BTC short settles the $5,000 USDC profit into the cash balance. Net result: +$5,000 USDC — the same as before.
The difference is in delivery fees: with the old method the fee was calculated on 1.5 BTC total; with the new method it is only calculated on 1 BTC (the option delivery), and the remaining futures position netted to zero, resulting in no delivery fee for the future. Total delivery fees are therefore one-third lower.
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Buying a call option |
A trader buys a SOL call option with a strike price of 250 USDC for 10 USDC. As Solana has a multiplier of 10 applied the buyer pays 10 * 10 USDC = 100 USDC. With the multiplier this call option represents the right to buy 10 SOL for 250 USDC each. The option is cash settled. At the expiry, the SOL Index is at 275 USDC and the delivery price is 275 USDC. In this case, the option is settled for 25 USDC per 1 SOL. This is calculated by subtracting the strike price minus the delivery price. 275 - 250 = 25. As Solana has a multiplier of 10 the total amount USDC which is settled is 25 * 10 = 250 USDC At the expiry, the trader’s account is credited with 250 USDC (25 * 10), and the seller’s account is debited with 250 USDC. The initial cost was 100 USDC, therefore the trader’s profit is 150 USDC. Any call option with an exercise price (strike price) above 275 USDC will expire worthless. Exercising of in the money options happens automatically at the expiry. The trader cannot exercise the option himself, or exercise it before the expiration. However, option positions can still be closed before expiry though by trading them in the open market. |
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Buying a put option |
A trader buys a SOL put option with a strike price of 250 USDC for 10 USDC. This put option represents the right to sell 1 SOL for 250 USDC. At the expiry, the SOL Index is at 225 USDC and the delivery price is 225 USDC. In this case, the option is settled for 225 USDC per 1 SOL. This is calculated by subtracting the delivery price minus the strike price. 250 - 225 = 25. As Solana has a multiplier of 10 the total amount USDC which is settled is 25 * 10 = 250 USDC At the expiry, the trader’s account is credited with 250 USDC (25 * 10), and the seller’s account is debited with 250 USDC. The initial purchase price was 100 USDC; therefore, the trader’s profit is 150 USDC. Any put option with an exercise price (strike price) below 225 USDC will expire worthless. Exercising of in the money options happens automatically at the expiry. The trader cannot exercise the option himself, or exercise it before the expiration. However, option positions can still be closed before expiry though by trading them in the open market. |
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Selling a call option |
A trader sells a SOL call option with a strike price of 250 USDC for 10 USDC. As Solana has a multiplier of 10 applied the seller receives 10 * 10 USDC = 100 USDC. At the expiry, the SOL Index is at 225 USDC and the delivery price is 225 USDC. The option expires worthless as the delivery price is below the strike price of the call option. The buyer lost 100 USDC and the seller gained 100 USDC. |
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Selling a put option |
A trader sells a put option with a strike price of 250 USDC for 10 USDC At the expiry, the SOL Index is at 275 USDC and the delivery price is 275 USDC. The option expires worthless as the delivery price is above the strike price of the put option. The buyer lost 100 USDC and the seller gained 100 USDC. |
These are the formulas as used with Deribit's linear (USDC settled) options.
Call option price:
C = (F * N(d1)) - (K * N(d2))
Put option:
P = (K * N(-d2)) - (F * N(-d1))
d1 and d2 are calculated as follows:
d1 = (ln(F/K) + ((σ^2)/2) * T) / (σ * sqrt(T))
d2 = d1 - (σ * sqrt(T))
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(C/P) Option Price/Market Price |
The mark price of the call/put option (or bid/ask when calculating bid/ask IV) |
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(K) Strike Price |
The strike price of the option |
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(F) Forward Price |
Forward price for the option expiry |
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(T) Time Until Expiration |
The amount of time in years until the expiry of the option. Example: If an option expires in 1 day and 17 hours, the time to expiry is (1+(17/24))/365 = 0.00468 years The full amount of time is included in the calculations. |
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(σ) Volatility |
The IV of the option. The standard deviation the underlying asset's returns. |
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(N) Normal Distribution |
The standard cumulative normal distribution function |
Option trades are limited by a combination of 2 parameters
The highest potential value of the contract given a 6% price move up with a volatility range up scenario and the lowest potential value of the contract given a 6% price move down with a volatility range down scenario.
Orders beyond the bandwidth will not be accepted. This approach ensures that the trading limits reflect both the potential risk associated with the option contract and the need for market stability.
If market circumstances require so, bandwidth parameters could be adjusted at the sole discretion of Deribit.
Currently, only limit orders (not market orders) are accepted by the matching engine. Additionally, an order can be a “post-only” order; however, this functionality is not available for advanced order types (explained below).
A post-only order will always enter the order book without being instantly matched. If the order were to be matched, our trading engine would adjust the order so that it enters the order book at the next best possible price.
Example: If a trader places a post-only buy order at 1 USDC, but there is an offer at 0.9999 USDC, the price of the order will be automatically adjusted to 0.9998 USDC, so that it enters the order book as a limit order.
Volatility Orders
For Linear USDC Options, volatility orders are supported as well. The trader can submit them by checking "Advanced Order" on the order form.
Volatility orders are orders, with pre-set constant implied volatility. This type of order makes it possible to market-make options series without additional market maker applications.
The forward price will be used as the underlying price for calculating IV orders.
Due to various reasons, there can be a situation when options are traded at prices caused by an abnormal non-orderly market, with a high chance that one side of the trade has been done unwillingly. In such cases, Deribit might adjust the prices or reverse trades.
Price adjustments or reversal of options trades will be done only if the traded price of the options contract was further than mistrade correction value away from the theoretical price of the underlying options contract.
If a trader realizes that a trade has been executed at a price regarded as mispriced, he should write an email to the exchange (support@deribit.com) asking for a price adjustment as soon as possible.
The theoretical price of the option is the mark price, though it is difficult for the exchange to have the mark price exactly matching the theoretical price at all times. Therefore, in case of a disagreement about the theoretical price, this price will be determined by consulting with primary market makers on the platform. If there is any disagreement, Deribit will follow their recommendations as to what was the theoretical value of the option at the moment of the trade.
A request for a price adjustment has to be made within 2 hours after the execution of the trade. If for whatever reason the counterparty has already made a withdrawal of funds, and Deribit is not capable to retrieve enough funds from the counterparty, a price adjustment will only be made for the amount that was retrievable from the counterparty account. The insurance fund is not meant and will not be used for funding mistrades.