The Council of Elders Reconvenes: The Greenland Siege and the Power of Gamma

In this episode of Volatility Views, the Council of Elders—Mark Longo, Russell Rhoads, and Mark Sebastian—gather at the Hall of Wisdom to break down a week of market madness that would make Skeletor blush. From VIX spikes driven by "Greenland Siege" headlines to the massive $100 breakout in Silver, the team analyzes the forces reshaping the volatility landscape.

• The Volatility Review: The team breaks down the "Greenland Whipsaw." We look at the VIX Cash flirting with a 20 handle before "deal" headlines sent vol crashing back to the Pit of Peril.

• Attack of the Zero DTEs: Huge news from NASDAQ! The Elders discuss the launch of daily options on individual equities. Is this a boon for traders or a "Snake Mountain" trap of contra-exercise risk?

• VIX Term Structure & Tactical Flow: Russell and Mark dive into the Feb/March roll and the staggering volume in Feb 25 and 35 calls. Plus, a look at the "Hero's Journey" for Silver as it hits the par strike.

• Vol Death Match 2.0: Get ready for the ultimate showdown between the Flow Master and Scott Nations. Two men enter, one man emerges—you decide the victor at theoptionsinsider.com/pro .

• Eternia Nostalgia: The crew is "unreasonably excited" for the new Masters of the Universe movie. We discuss the teaser for the teaser, the lack of "CGI roids" on the new He-Man, and why a Snake Mountain popcorn bucket is a mandatory purchase.

• Mark Longo: The Options Insider

• Russell Rhoads: Indiana University

• Mark Sebastian: Option Pit

The Option Block goes on the road! This week, Mark Longo is coming to you live from the Securities Traders Association (STA) 100th Anniversary event in Chicago. Joined in person by Henry "The Flowmaster" Schwartz, the team breaks down the biggest highlights from the conference and the massive volatility shifts hitting the equity markets.

• Live from the Floor: Mark and Henry discuss the 100-year legacy of the STA and the evolution of the options industry from the birth of the CBOE in 1973 to today's high-volume digital environment.

• The State of the Industry: Henry shares key takeaways from his panel, including the explosion of volume in Single Stock, ETF, and Index options. Plus, a look at how Robinhood has reshaped retail education and reduced friction for a new generation of traders.

• Volume Predictions for 2026: With the market currently averaging 66-67 million contracts a day, are we on track for a record-shattering 17 billion contracts this year?

• Monday & Wednesday Expirations: It's a done deal! The team discusses the upcoming listing of Monday and Wednesday daily expirations for major names like Tesla, Nvidia, and Apple, and what this means for after-hours risk management.

• The "Greenland Trade": Navigating a week where the market swung 100 handles down and 100 handles back up on geopolitical volatility.

• The Odd Block: The Flowmaster provides an update on ARDX and CWEN, plus a deep dive into the Mag 10 (Magnificent 10 Index) where put volume is currently lighting up the tape at record levels.

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This episode of The Option Block is brought to you by Cboe Global Markets. To learn more about the suite of S&P 500 Index Options (SPX) and Mini S&P 500 (XSP) options, visit https:// cboe.com/spx

Geopolitical drama is back on the menu, and the futures options markets are feeling the heat. In this episode of This Week in Futures Options (TWIFO), Mark Longo breaks down a wild week where nearly every complex saw a volatility explosion. From potential trade wars to "Greenland drama," we explore how the tape is reacting at CME Group.

On today's episode, we dive into:

• The Volatility Spike: A look at the CVOL (CME Volatility Index) across the board. Why Treasury vol is roaring back to life (up 10 points) and Energy is pining the needle at 69.35.

• Natural Gas Mania: Nat Gas jumps a staggering 57% as the polar vortex hits.

• Metals & FX: Precious metals explode in both price and vol, while FX vol gains a full point on trade war chatter.

• The Dark Side: Bitcoin slides over 8%, leading the losers alongside Palladium and Copper.

• Nasdaq vs. Small Caps: We analyze the pronounced rotation out of large-cap tech and into small caps.

• Zero-DTE Action: A deep dive into the massive paper hitting the Nasdaq-100 (NQ), where 0-DTE contracts dominated 43% of the weekly flow.

• The March Skew: Why traders are paying a premium for March 24,000 puts in the Nasdaq and what it means for the next 60 days of market risk.

• Call Discounts: Is the 13.5% discount on March calls a buying opportunity or a warning sign?

• Geopolitical Impact: How the "Greenland deal" headlines and Middle East tensions are impacting WTI and precious metals.