Bitcoin at $111K: Traders Play Defense Ahead of U.S. Jobs Report.

What is happening: BTC is trading around $111,000 after recovering from yesterday's drop. But the interesting part is not the price—it's what the traders are doing.

Traders Ensure: The Game of Puts

From CME and Deribit we see a clear movement: they are buying cheap out-of-the-money puts (OTM)—basically “I am going to sell” options at lower prices. Why? Tomorrow Friday the nonfarm payrolls (NFP) of the U.S. arrives—the report that moves markets.

The expectation is 110,000 new jobs (above the 73,000 from July) and unemployment stalled at 4.2%. Sounds strong, right? That's why traders are secured.

The Labor Market Sends Contradictory Signals

Here is the dilemma:

Things that endorse Bitcoin:

• Job offers fell to 7.2 million (less than expected)
• The ADP report showed that private employers added only 54,000 jobs in August ( compared to 104,000 in July )—that's a drop.
• Everything points to the Fed could start lowering rates by the end of 2025

What worries:

• If the NFP surprises to the upside, the Fed forgets about cuts and focuses on inflation
• That would be a blow to Bitcoin in the short term

What the Options Market is Watching

Gabe Selby (CF Benchmarks) says it this way: there is a “robust appetite for leveraged downside exposure” in 5-delta puts. In other words: traders are buying cheap insurance against brutal declines.

On Deribit (, the largest crypto options exchange ), short-term puts are trading at a premium to calls. The signal is clear: massive hedging before the NFP.

The Levels That Matter

BTC bounced back to $111,000, but heavy resistance is at $112,000.

Support: $110,000 and $108,000 Resistance: $112,000 and $115,000

Scenarios:

• Weaker than expected NFP → BTC could test $115K
• Strong NFP → Price drops back to $108K or less

The game tomorrow: Employment data may tilt the balance. Until then, traders are playing defensively. Bitcoin is on the tightrope.