Guide · India
Crypto market hours in India (IST)
Bitcoin trades all day and all night, but liquidity comes in waves that follow the clocks of Tokyo, London and New York. Here are those waves in India Standard Time.
Fixed times every day
| Event | UTC | India (IST) |
|---|---|---|
| Daily candle closes (1D on most charts) | 00:00 | 05:30 |
| BTC perpetual funding payments | 00:00 · 08:00 · 16:00 | 05:30 · 13:30 · 21:30 |
| Global options expiry (daily, weekly Fri, monthly last Fri) | 08:00 | 13:30 |
| Settlement window (30-minute index average) | 07:30-08:00 | 13:00-13:30 |
| Delta Exchange India BTC and ETH options expiry | 12:00 | 17:30 |
| Weekly candle closes (Sunday night UTC) | Mon 00:00 | Mon 05:30 |
Market sessions in IST
| Session | Winter (Nov-Mar) | Summer (Mar-Oct) |
|---|---|---|
| Tokyo opens (09:00 JST, no daylight saving) | 05:30 IST | 05:30 IST |
| London opens (08:00 local) | 13:30 IST | 12:30 IST |
| US stock market opens (09:30 New York) | 20:00 IST | 19:00 IST |
| US CPI and jobs data (08:30 New York) | 19:00 IST | 18:00 IST |
| FOMC rate decision (14:00 New York) | 00:30 IST | 23:30 IST |
| US stock market closes (16:00 New York) | 02:30 IST | 01:30 IST |
| CME Bitcoin futures: weekend close (Fri 16:00 Chicago) | Sat 03:30 IST | Sat 02:30 IST |
| CME Bitcoin futures: reopen (Sun 17:00 Chicago) | Mon 04:30 IST | Mon 03:30 IST |
How a typical day looks from India
05:30 IST: the daily close and Tokyo
The daily candle closes, funding is paid and Asia opens. Often a quiet start, and a good time to read the daily report.
12:30-13:30 IST: London and the global options expiry
Europe arrives, and at 13:30 IST options settle on the global options exchanges. On Fridays this is the big weekly expiry.
17:30 IST: Delta Exchange India expiry
Indian BTC and ETH options settle.
18:00-20:00 IST: US data and the US open
The most active window of the day. US CPI and jobs numbers land first, then the stock market opens. Watch the order book and liquidations.
21:30 IST: funding again
The third funding payment of the day.
Late night: FOMC and the US close
Fed decisions land at 23:30 or 00:30 IST, and the US market closes at 01:30 or 02:30 IST.
Common questions
What time does the crypto market open in India?
It never closes. Crypto trades 24 hours a day, every day. The busiest stretch for Bitcoin is usually around the US open, 19:00-20:00 IST, and the quietest is the early hours before the Tokyo open at 05:30 IST.
What time does the daily Bitcoin candle close in IST?
At 05:30 IST. Most charts and exchanges close the daily candle at 00:00 UTC.
What time is funding paid in India?
At 05:30, 13:30 and 21:30 IST for BTC perpetual futures (every 8 hours from 00:00 UTC).
Why does Bitcoin move at 19:00 or 20:00 IST?
That is when the US stock market opens (09:30 New York). US macro data such as CPI comes out an hour and a half earlier, at 18:00 or 19:00 IST. Both bring a wave of new orders into the market.
What is the CME gap?
CME Bitcoin futures stop trading over the weekend, from Saturday early morning to Monday early morning IST. If Bitcoin moves in between, the CME chart opens with a gap that some traders expect to fill.