Read the chain like it matters.
Practical, jargon-light guides on the data that actually moves option markets — positioning, open interest, PCR, max pain, OI buildup. Written for traders who already know news is the slowest signal.
Fundamentals
Max Pain Explained →
The strike where option writers pay out the least. How it's calculated, why it matters, and the limits.
Put-Call Ratio (PCR) →
Two opposite readings — contrarian and trend-following — and how to know which applies.
How to Read an Option Chain →
Column-by-column walkthrough. Strike, OI, change-in-OI, LTP, ATM — what to focus on and what to ignore.
OI Buildup →
The 2×2 grid: long buildup, short buildup, short covering, long unwinding — and which side is initiating.
Option Expiry Mechanics →
NIFTY Tuesday, SENSEX Thursday, BTC daily UTC. Settlement rules and last-hour behavior.
Closing Auction Session (CAS) →
F&O stocks auction 15:15–15:35 from 3 Aug 2026. IEP vs reference price, and when NIFTY actually prints.
Implied Volatility & Skew →
What IV really is, the volatility smile, why NIFTY put IV is always higher than call IV.
Option Greeks →
Delta, Gamma, Theta, Vega — what each Greek does to your P&L, without the calculus.
India VIX Explained →
The NIFTY fear index — what it measures, what the levels mean, and the contrarian reading.
Index vs Stock Options →
Cash vs physical settlement, liquidity gap, F&O ban rules — when to use which.
F&O Ban List →
What MWPL means, why stocks land on the ban list, and what traders can (and cannot) do during the ban period.
BTC Options vs Indian Index Options →
24/7 vs 6-hour sessions, coin-margined vs cash-settled, daily expiries, and why BTC volatility runs 3-5x NIFTY's.
Crypto options
Deribit Options Explained →
Inverse BTC vs USDC ETH margin, daily/weekly/monthly expiries at 08:00 UTC, mark_iv and how to read the chain.
BTC Max Pain & PCR →
Aggregate Deribit positioning — typical PCR ranges, max pain across all expiries, Friday expiry behavior.
Crypto Options Expiry →
Daily, weekly and monthly at 08:00 UTC — settlement, Friday pins, rolling, and the 13:30 IST cut.
Bitcoin Liquidations Explained →
Forced closes on futures and perps — long vs short, cascades, heatmaps, and why venue coverage matters.
DVOL Explained →
Deribit's BTC vol index — 30-day implied vol, typical levels, and how it differs from India VIX and chain IV.
Markets & regulation
Reading FII/DII Positioning Data →
What the daily flow numbers actually measure, cash vs derivatives, how FII and DII flows offset — and the mistakes that come from overreading a single day's print.
SEBI F&O Regulation Explained →
Weekly-expiry rationalisation, the lot-size revision framework, position limits & MWPL, and the margin rules tightened around expiry — what changed and why.
Want all of this live, on six Indian indices and BTC? Login to the terminal →