The Options Insider Radio Network

Latest Episodes:

Options Boot Camp 396: SPCX Options and Rogue Iron Condors Jun 25, 2026

Show notes

What happens when paper trading meets the real world? On this episode of Options Boot Camp, Mark Longo is joined by Dan Passarelli (Market Taker Mentoring) and Matt Amberson (ORATS) to tackle one of the biggest challenges for premium sellers: why a single losing iron condor can wipe out weeks of steady gains.

The discussion covers practical risk management techniques for credit spreads, when to take profits, how to manage losing trades, and why backtesting is just as important as paper trading. The panel also dives into the explosive launch of SPCX (SpaceX) options, including record-breaking volume, sky-high implied volatility, and why experienced traders approached the frenzy very differently.

Finally, the crew answers listener questions about zero-DTE options, VIX term structure, calendar spreads, and whether the options market has fundamentally changed over the past few years.

In this episode you'll learn:

Why paper trading can create unrealistic expectations
Managing iron condors before one trade wipes out multiple winners
Profit-taking vs. stop-loss rules for credit spreads
How backtesting can improve trading discipline
What made the SPCX options launch historic
Trading ultra-high implied volatility
Have 0DTE options changed options trading forever?
Managing calendar spreads during volatility spikes
Why you still can't trade spot VIX

The Hot Options Report: 06-24-2026 Jun 24, 2026

Show notes

On this episode of The Hot Options Report, Mark Longo breaks down another action-packed trading session featuring a surprise meme-stock resurgence, a major post-earnings move from Micron, continued pressure in SpaceX, and another massive day of options activity from the market's biggest names.

This episode includes:

• NVIDIA tops the options leaderboard once again • Tesla, Amazon and Apple dominate today's active options • SpaceX continues its sharp pullback after its record-setting options debut • Strategy (MSTR) falls back below the $100 level • Wendy's crashes the Top 12 during an unexpected meme-stock rally • GameStop, SoFi and Microsoft stay active • Micron reports earnings after the close and immediately erupts higher in after-hours trading • Today's standout Bigger Wing Scan featuring GameStop, Hertz and UiPath

Plus, Mark explains what today's hottest options trades may have been signaling—and where traders could be watching next.

For even more unusual options activity and institutional order flow, visit TheHotOptionsReport.com.

The Futures Rundown 81: A Blood-Red Week in Silver, Crude and Crypto Jun 24, 2026

Show notes

It was a brutal week across many of the most popular futures markets.

On this episode of The Futures Rundown, Mark Longo breaks down a massive selloff that hammered precious metals, cryptocurrencies, and other key futures products. Silver led the losers, plunging nearly 20% on the week, while Bitcoin and Ether continued their painful year-to-date declines. Meanwhile, energy markets remained volatile as traders digested developments in the Middle East and watched fuel prices retreat from recent highs.

Inside this episode:

Silver's stunning collapse and why traders are watching the July 40 puts
Bitcoin and Ether continue their 2026 bloodletting
Platinum and palladium join the precious metals selloff
Cocoa stages a surprising comeback
VIX futures catch a bid
The year's biggest winners and losers across the futures landscape
Record activity in Nasdaq Micro futures
RBOB gasoline and heating oil pull back from their recent highs
What futures traders should be watching next

The Hot Options Report: 06-23-2026 Jun 24, 2026

Show notes

The markets turned blood red today, but the options tape is still lighting up! Join Mark Longo as he breaks down a macro-focused session where single-name volume took a slight breather, but the underlying volatility remained fast and furious.

We head over to TheHotOptionsReport.com to unpack today's featured 1K Spread scan, flagging 71 massive non-index spreads with Netflix, XLF, and IWM leading the charge. Then, we countdown the top 10 most active underlying equities of the day, including:

Palantir (#10) & Intel (#8): Checking out aggressive short-term call selling after a rough session.
Microsoft (#9) & Amazon (#5): The tech giants bucking the red trend to post impressive rallies.
Micron (#6): Taking a massive 13% drubbing ahead of earnings. Are the $1100 calls a buy or sell?
SpaceX (#3): The rollercoaster continues! We break down the newly added weekly options and the heavy premium on the Friday $160 calls.
Tesla (#2) & NVIDIA (#1): Tesla sheds nearly 6%, while NVIDIA pins exactly at the $200.00 par line.

Want to run your own unusual activity scans? Head over to TheHotOptionsReport.com to build your own watchlists and track the tape.

OIC 2026: Event Contracts, Crypto, and the Intersection of Regulation Jun 23, 2026

Show notes

Event contracts and digital asset derivatives are emerging under CFTC oversight, while listed options and ETFs remain SEC-regulated. Meanwhile, some platforms are offering both. This panel will examine: • The SEC and CFTC frameworks and their implications for innovation. • Whether event contracts should be viewed as gaming, financial hedging, or a hybrid. • How crypto-linked options and ETFs fit into the regulatory patchwork. • What market participants need to prepare for as regulatory convergence (or conflict) plays out.

Moderator: The Honorable Dawn D. Stump, Principal, Stump Strategic

Panelists:

JJ Kinahan, Senior Vice President, Head of Retail Expansion and Alternative Investment Products, Cboe Global Markets
Ryan Jachym, Global Head of Markets Policy in the Office of Government and Regulatory Affairs, Goldman Sachs
Summer Mersinger, Chief Executive Officer, Blockchain Association
Thomas Plummer, Prediction Markets, Jump Trading

This panel is proudly sponsored by State Street Investment Management

OIC 2026: Institutional Innovation: Derivative-Based ETFs and the Role of FLEX Options Jun 23, 2026

Show notes

Institutions are increasingly using derivative-based ETFs and FLEX Options as complementary tools to achieve precise risk-return outcomes. This panel will explore how products such as buffer and target outcome ETFs, hedged equity structures, and single-name/high-payout ETFs are reshaping institutional allocation models — and how FLEX Options provide the customization needed to support these strategies.

Moderator: Sara Levin, Managing Director, ETF and Derivative Trading, WallachBeth Capital

Panelists:

Sean Truett, Senior Vice President of Strategy & Business Development, Box Options Market LLC
Geoff Gaiss, Vice President Global Derivatives, TRAFiX Burke Ashenden, Head of Capital Markets & Institutional Strategy, Innovator
James Maund, Head of Capital Markets, Krane Shares

This panel is proudly sponsored by BofA Securities.

The Crypto Rundown 321: Trading MSTR with Reckless Abandon & The Illinois "Privilege Tax" Jun 22, 2026

Show notes

On this episode, Mark Longo is joined by Bill Ulivieri of Cenacle Capital Management to break down the latest action across Bitcoin, IBIT, and the wider crypto derivatives space.

The guys dive deep into MicroStrategy (MSTR), discussing its current 26% discount to net asset value and why Bill is looking to sell the $100 par puts "with reckless abandon." They also explore the Altcoin Universe—including the growing volume in PER (Hyperliquid), the latest on Circle, and a look at decentralized AI tokens like BitSensor (TAO)—before tackling a listener question on major regional transaction regulations that could ripple across the broader digital asset landscape.

In this episode, we break down:

Bitcoin & iBit Breakdown: Navigating the dip to $62K, current iBit options flow, and the anticipation of a July 4th Clarity Act pop.
The MSTR Volatility Monster: Why MSTR options are trading at nearly 2x the volatility of iBit, and how to trade the current net asset value (NAV) discount.
Altcoin Universe: Deep dives into ETH futures, BMNR earnings, Circle time-spreads, and the rise of decentralized AI tokens like BitSensor (TAO).
Crypto Questions: Breaking down new regional digital asset transaction acts, what they mean for self-custody wallets, and the upcoming industry pushback against surprise transaction fees.

The Hot Options Report: 06-22-2026 Jun 22, 2026

Show notes

Host Mark Longo breaks down a wild, high-volume day across the options tape where tech took a beating, chip stocks went wild, and a massive names suffered jaw-dropping premium swings.

First, we kick the tires on today's Lucky Seven Scan at TheHotOptionsReport.com , highlighting unusual volume spikes in Arcosa Inc. (ACA), Absci Corp (ABSI), and Acumen Pharmaceuticals (ABOS).

Then, we dive into the top 10 most active options chains of the day:

SMCI (#10): Rallies over 15% to $35.46. Did buyers of the weekly $40 calls get a banger day?
Intel (#9): Up nearly $7 to $140.94. Paper leans heavy into selling the weekly $160 covered calls.
Big Tech Sell-Offs (#8 - #4): Breaking down the overriding and sweat equity in Netflix (NFLX), Microsoft (MSFT)—which broke the $370 strike in both directions—Alphabet (GOOGL), Apple (AAPL), and Amazon (AMZN).
SpaceX (#3): A brutal 16.5% downward slide ($30.40 drop) to close at $154.60. Is a 126 Vol implied volatility too cheap for the June weekly $180 calls?
Nvidia (#2): A relatively light 2.92 million contracts as NVDA slides to $208.65, making the zero-day-to-expiration (0DTE) $215 calls look like a slam-dunk sell.
Tesla (#1): TSLA takes the crown, rallying to $405.05. We look at the absolute wild price action on the 0DTE $410 calls that hit an intraday high of $415.

Check out the data yourself: Head over to TheHotOptionsReport.com for pre-baked unusual options scans.

The Option Block 1479: Biotech Calls, Pizza Puts & SpaceX Tears Jun 22, 2026

Show notes

On today's episode, host Mark Longo and the all-star panel break down a fascinating "ho-hum" macro day that is hiding massive, wild swings under the surface of individual single-name equities.

First, the crew tests their wits with an official geography question from a 1980s Trivial Pursuit deck that leaves everyone questioning the data. Then, Mike Tosaw and Andrew Giovinazzi dive deep into the trading floor to look at the massive rotation into small caps (IWM), unusual vertical action in September VIX options, and why the tech giants (MSFT, GOOGL, AMZN) are shedding serious weight from their recent all-time highs while AI chip darlings like SanDisk (WDC) and Micron (MU) steal all the oxygen in the room.

On the Trading Block & Odd Block:

SpaceX Tears: Andrew's mama, Mama Lobster, is in mourning as SpaceX plunges roughly 11% in a single session. Is the air coming out of the IPO bubble, or is the premium vastly underpriced for single-leg buyers?
Biotech Calls (ERAS): Heavy upside call buying hits the October 20 lines for Erasca Inc. Andrew breaks down why this early-stage oncology player is seeing big institutional accumulation.
Pizza Puts (PZZA): Massive volume hits the August 25 puts for Papa John's. The panel breaks down why the entire restaurant and fast-food sector is getting squeezed eight ways from Sunday.
Fiserv (FI): The continuation of the massive July 40 put saga. Is paper finally getting assigned on this "stair-step" downward trend?

The Strategy Block:

Mike Tosaw breaks his own golden rule of spreading to discuss why the extreme volatility and massive price extensions in SpaceX make a rare, compelling case for buying single-leg options instead of spreads.

Masters of the Universe Spoilercast: We Have the Power! Jun 19, 2026

Show notes

By the Power of Grayskull, we're finally doing it!

In this special spoiler-filled episode, Mark Longo, Mark Sebastian, and Uncle Mike Tosaw journey back to Eternia to break down the new Masters of the Universe movie. From Skeletor, Trap Jaw, Battle Cat, and Man-At-Arms to Orko, She-Ra, and the future of the franchise, the gang dives deep into everything they loved, what surprised them, and where the story could go next.

Did the filmmakers finally deliver the He-Man movie fans have been waiting nearly 40 years to see? How does it compare to the infamous 1987 Dolph Lundgren film? What worked, what didn't, and what characters need to appear in the sequel?

Grab your Power Sword and join us for the ultimate Masters of the Universe discussion.

In This Episode:

First impressions of the new Masters of the Universe film
Skeletor, Trap Jaw, Battle Cat and Beast Man breakdown
The return of Eternia and Castle Grayskull
Favorite characters and standout scenes
Orko, She-Ra and the post-credit reveals
What we want from a potential sequel
Why this movie resonated with longtime He-Man fans

⚠️ Full spoilers throughout this episode.

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