Zebu blog

Category: Futures and Options

  • These 5 Factors Save Your MONEY in Options!

    Why Do the Most Option Owners Fail to Make Money? Also, safety precautions you can take Making money on the financial market can be done well by engaging in options trading. It is, however, one of the riskiest types of dealing, particularly for newcomers. Options trading has become more common in India recently, but many traders there have lost a lot of money because they lack information and experience. In this blog article, we’ll look at the main reasons why most option traders—especially option buyers—lose money on the Indian stock market.

    Absence of expertise and knowledge

    The dearth of information and expertise is the primary factor behind why the majority of people lose money when trading options. Options trading is a smart and complicated financial tool, and success in it necessitates a certain degree of knowledge. Many dealers in India begin trading options without having a thorough grasp of the risks involved, the workings of options, or the various tactics available. This dearth of expertise and understanding frequently results in expensive errors and losses.

    Selling for a profit

    The majority of option traders also lose money because they are dealing speculatively. Speculative trading refers to the practise of buying options without a thorough knowledge of the underlying commodity or market in the hopes of making a fast profit. Many traders in India participate in speculative trading, frequently purchasing options with high fees in the hopes of receiving a sizable payout. However, this strategy is dangerous and frequently leads to sizable loses.

    Using technical analysis too much

    In India, many dealers use technical analysis to evaluate the stock market before making trading choices. Overrelying on technical analysis, however, can be an error when buying options. When buying options, it’s important to consider other variables in addition to the stock price, such as implied volatility and time decay. Overreliance on basic analysis may result in a limited viewpoint and a poor trading approach.

    Insufficient risk management

    Options dealing is naturally risky, and those who engage in it without a solid risk management plan run the risk of losing money more frequently. Many traders in India don’t establish stop-losses or position boundaries because they don’t comprehend risk management well. Large losses caused by this poor risk management have the potential to empty entire trading accounts.

    Lack of mental endurance

    Options dealing takes perseverance, self control, and a long-term outlook. In India, many dealers lack discipline and act too quickly when entering and exiting trades. This impatience frequently causes buying decisions to be founded on feelings rather than reason, which results to losses.

    In summation, if done properly, options trading can be a lucrative type of trading. However, on the Indian stock market, most traders lose money, particularly option purchasers, because they lack knowledge and experience, engage in speculative trading, rely too heavily on technical analysis, fail to control risk, and lack discipline. To be effective in options trading, it is crucial to educate oneself, have a solid trading plan, and handle risk appropriately.

    FAQs

    1. What is the most successful strategy in options trading?

      The most successful options trading strategies often focus on hedging and managing risk, like covered calls or spreads, rather than trying to chase big wins.

    2. How can I reduce losses while trading options?

      Option trading for beginners should start small, set stop-losses, and avoid overleveraging to minimize potential losses.

    3. What common mistakes should I avoid in options trading?

      Options trading tips include avoiding emotional decisions, not understanding contracts fully, and ignoring risk management.

    4. Is options trading safer with proper risk management?

      Yes, making money with options is much more realistic when you manage your position sizes and have a clear plan.

    5. Which type of options (call or put) is better for beginners?

      Beginners often start with call options, as they’re simpler to understand, but both calls and puts can be used once you learn the basics.

  • The Benefits Of Futures Trading In India

    An index future is a futures contract on a market-wide or sectoral index. For example, the NSE has futures on the market-wide Nifty index and liquid futures on the Bank Nifty index (which is a sectoral index of liquid banks). Both of these indices are very liquid, which means that they are traded a lot by both individual and institutional investors. Why are index futures becoming very popular in India? What are the pros of trading in index futures? The once-famous Badla system on the BSE, which involved trading in stock futures, led to the growth of index futures trading in India. Let’s talk about how to trade index futures, but let’s also think about how trading index futures might help traders.

    1. Stock risk can be avoided by taking a broad view of things.

    Let’s say you’ve decided to invest in banking stocks, but it’s hard to know which ones to buy. Private banks are having trouble with valuation, and PSU banks may be worried about nonperforming assets (NPA). A better plan would be to look at the banking industry as a whole, which will naturally diversify your portfolio. You can do that by buying Bank Nifty Futures and joining the trend of banks going up. The benefit is that you can keep this position open for as long as you want by rolling it over every month for a marginal cost of about 0.50%.

    2. You can trade both long positions and short positions.

    If you are long, which means you are buying, it is fine. What if you don’t like banks? You can sell short banking stocks on the stock market, or you can sell the stocks you already own. But because rolling settlements are used on Indian markets, you can only short stocks during the day. The other option is to sell stock futures of specific banks, but this time you run the risk of losing money on a specific bank. All of these problems might be solved if you just sold the Bank Nifty index futures. If you think the Indian market as a whole will go down, you can just sell Nifty futures.

    3. You can trade index futures with less money

    When you trade futures, keep in mind that you need to trade on margin. But margins on indices like the Nifty and the Bank Nifty are usually lower than margins on individual stocks. This is because an index is made up of several stocks, which gives it a natural way to spread out risk. Because there is less risk, you need less margin to buy an index futures position. By doing this, it will be made sure that less money will be locked up.

    4. You can lower your risk with index futures.

    This is a very important part of how you manage your portfolio. As a private or institutional investor, you can hold a large number of stocks in your portfolio. You think that the market will correct by 10% to 12% once the US Fed raises interest rates. You are also sure that the drop in the value of your stocks will only last a short time and that they will go back up in value in a few months. You could keep your money, but selling Nifty futures would be the best way to lower your risk. When the market goes down, you can make money by selling Nifty futures contracts. This will lower the average cost of the stocks you own. You will be in a better place in three months, for sure.

    5. The risk of not being able to sell these index futures is low

    We frequently observe liquidity problems in particular equities or stock futures. Index futures, on the other hand, almost never have liquidity risk because institutional investors like them. Because of this, the bid-ask spreads are also not very big. Because of this, it’s usually safe to trade in these index futures because you won’t run out of cash. This is one of the main reasons why people trade index futures all over the world.

    6. Index futures can help you spread out your investments.

    Even though this point is more about taking advantage of opportunities, it is related to the one about minimising risks. You have a portfolio that is mostly made up of financial assets right now. You think the RBI rate hikes pose some risk, so you want to make your money safer by investing in industries that don’t change as much, like FMCG and IT. Even though it is possible to buy these stocks, it will cost money and tie up money if this is a short-term opportunity. A better plan is to use FMCG index and IT index index futures to spread out your portfolio. You can structure your portfolio to be more diverse in this way with little risk and cost.

    7. Trading in index futures costs a lot less.

    This doesn’t need to be said again. The commission and STT rates for index futures are much lower than those for stocks or even stock futures. In fact, most brokers also offer fixed brokerage packages for indices, which makes them cheaper than stock futures. Take full advantage of the fact that index futures cost less.

    You might do well trading index futures because they have less risk and could give you a bigger return. But index futures are useful for more than just trading!

  • Which Is Riskier: Trading Futures Or Trading Options?

    Futures vs options trading always seem to be up for discussion. Traders talk and talk about whether futures or options are riskier. In any case, it’s important to think about how much risk you can handle before you take a side in the ongoing debate. Also, once you know exactly what futures and options are, it will be clear which one has more risks than the other.

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    A Brief Explanation of Options

    A contract between a buyer and a seller is an option. It gives the owner the right, but not the obligation, to buy or sell an asset at an agreed-upon price within a certain time frame. Options are contracts that are parts of a larger group of financial instruments called derivatives. They can be used on indices, stocks, and exchange-traded funds (ETFs).

    On the stock market today, options get their value from the underlying securities, such as stocks. When you trade stocks, all you are doing is trading ownership in a publicly traded company. Options contracts, on the other hand, let you trade the right or obligation to buy or sell any underlying stock. If you own an option, you do not automatically own the thing that the option is based on. Also, it doesn’t give you any rights to dividends.

    Futures: A Short Explanation

    Futures are also contracts or agreements to buy or sell certain stocks or commodities at a certain time in the future. In a futures contract, the buyer and seller agree ahead of time on prices, quantities, and the dates of future deliveries.

    You can either buy or sell in a futures contract. If the price goes up, buyers make money because they bought the asset when it was cheaper. If the prices go down, the people who sold at higher prices will make money.

    A Quick Look at Futures, Options, and Risks

    If you do online trading, you may know some things about how the markets work. For example, if you trade and invest in stocks, you know that you need to open a demat account. In the same way, you would know that futures and options are derivatives if you knew anything about them. They also use leverage, which makes them riskier than trading stocks. Futures and options both get their value from the asset that they are based on. Futures and options contracts make money or lose money based on how the price of the asset they are based on changes.

    There is enough risk in the share market today. Your risk tolerance may be a factor in deciding between futures and options, but it’s a given that futures are riskier than options. Even small changes in the price of an underlying asset can affect trading. This is especially true when trading options. Even though both have the same amount of leverage and capital at risk, futures are riskier because they are more likely to change. You need to know that leverage is like a “two-edged sword.” You can make money quickly and lose it just as fast. In terms of futures, you can make money quickly or lose it in an instant. This is not the case with options trading.

    With options, you can buy either “put” or “call” options while you are trading online. The most you can lose is the amount of money you have put into the options. If your prediction is way off and your options are worthless by the time your contract is up, you may have some bad luck, but you will only lose the premium you pay for the options.

    With futures contracts, on the other hand, you have unlimited liability. You will have to make a margin call to add more money to your account to make up for the daily losses. If you lose money every day, you may have to keep going until the underlying asset stops going against the wind. If you put most of your money into futures contracts and don’t have enough money to cover your margin calls, you could even go into debt. Does all of this sound too risky? You don’t have to worry. Technically, futures are not inherently riskier. Instead, it is the fact that futures can use a higher level of leverage that makes both profits and risks bigger. You can easily borrow money to buy stocks and get 5:1 leverage. With futures, you could get 25:1, 50:1, or even more. So, even the smallest moves can lead to huge profits or huge losses, depending on what was invested.

    Things to think about

    If traders had to choose between trading futures and trading options in the world of online trading, options would be the more interesting choice. In options, the most you can lose is what you put in the first place. Options trading might be the better choice, especially if you use the spread strategies that options give you. If you plan to hold on to trades for a long time, bull call spreads and bear put spreads can increase your chances of success. Futures are riskier because they use a higher level of leverage and a smaller amount of cash to control assets with a higher value. This means that the amount you can lose may be higher than the amount you put in at first. Also, some things about the market could make it hard or even impossible to sell or hedge a certain position.

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  • How Traders Earn Passive Income From Cash Covered Puts

    Futures and options are two types of derivatives contracts. They are used not only to protect the equity position but also to make a steady income. Many traders and investors combine futures, call options, and put options to make regular money from the stock market. They do this by using their holdings and balance margin to start trades.

    In this blog post, we’ll look at how selling cash-secured puts can be used as a way to make money on the stock market.

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    How do cash-secured puts work?

    As part of an option-selling strategy called “cash-secured put selling,” you set aside enough money to buy a stock at a certain price and then sell the put option for that price. The goal is to buy the stock for less than what it is worth on the market.

    There are, however, some risks involved. The first risk is that the price of the stock may never drop to the level where the trader wants to buy it. This could make it impossible to buy the stocks in the long run. The second risk is that the price of the stock could fall way below the strike price.

    Why selling cash-secured puts is a good idea

    To make money from the option premium, cash-secured puts are usually sold. How much you get depends on the value of the security and how much you are willing to pay for it.

    Gains Invested Quickly

    Cash-secured puts can give you cash right away. It can make option income more appealing and can also help reduce risk.

    You can get paid to invest

    A cash-secured put strategy is a great way to get paid to buy the stock you want to buy. This strategy lets you choose from a number of strike prices and expiration dates.

    Low-dividend stocks can be profitable

    If you want to increase your cash flow but don’t want to be limited by a low dividend yield, you can do so by selling cash-secured puts.

    Risks involved in this strategy

    Multiples of the Lot Size
    Futures and options, which are examples of derivatives, can only be traded in lots. This method won’t help you if you want to buy stocks in a very small amount or a fraction of the lot size.

    Not being able to profit from price correction
    Most investors who want to own shares of a company in the long run shouldn’t use the cash-secured put strategy. If the price of shares stays high, they may never be able to buy any.

    Repeated Actions
    Most investors are more interested in a simple “buy and hold” strategy. In this strategy, you sell cash-secured puts so that you can buy stocks when the person who bought the put options decides to sell. Since the option doesn’t have to be used, it takes more time to go through the same process every time it expires.

    Effects on tax
    When you sell cash-secured puts, the money you make is considered business income and is taxed based on the trader’s tax slab. If the trader owned the stock, he or she would get money from dividends and the increase in value of the stock. Together, these two types of income might have a lower tax rate.

    Getting to Know with an Example
    Let’s say that the price of Stock XYZ is Rs. 250 right now. Stock XYZ’s derivatives contract has a lot size of 100 shares, and you want to buy 100 shares of XYZ for Rs. 235.

    You can make money by selling the 235 strike price put option every month and keeping the premium. Let’s say that for the current month, the premium for 235 put options is Rs. 8. You get Rs. 800 when you sell that put option (Rs. 8 x 100 shares).

    This means that you are willing to buy 100 units of the stock XYZ for Rs. 235 at the end of the expiration period if the price at that time is Rs. 250 or less. For this obligation to buy, you need to keep an account balance of Rs. 23,500 (Rs. 235 x 100 shares).

    If the stock price goes above Rs. 235, you get to keep the entire premium you got for selling the put option with a strike price of Rs. 2350.

    The Bottom Line: Cash-secured put selling is a strategy that involves buying a security at a price that you would be willing to pay. This method works for people who want to make more money or feel safer without spending too much. You might not want to sell cash-secured puts because the deal is complicated and you don’t want to own the security. This strategy could be better for investors and traders who want to make money on the stock market without doing much work.

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  • Here’s How Volatility Impacts Put and Call Prices Equally

    What does it mean to say that something is volatile? Volatility, in simple terms, is a way to measure risk. But in technical terms, what does volatility mean? It can be thought of as the average difference between returns and the mean. Every investor wants a way to put their money to work that will give them predictable returns over time. When returns are too unstable, they can’t be predicted. At that point, the asset is worth less than it did before. Investors usually don’t like stocks that are too volatile, and those stocks tend to be worth less. But did you know that when it comes to options, it’s the other way around? In fact, volatility makes both call options and put options worth more.

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    Usually, volatility and the prices of assets go in opposite directions. The risk is higher when the volatility is high, and when the risk is high, the returns are lower than expected. Investors are always willing to pay more for stability than for risk. But things are very different when it comes to call and put options. When the market gets more volatile, both call and put options are worth more. So, let’s figure out why volatility makes the price of options go up. Let’s also look at the relationship between how volatile an option is and how much it costs. How does this affect the implied volatility between a call and a put?

    First, let’s look at what it means for call options.
    Volatility means that the stock’s returns are likely to be very different from the mean. It also means that there is too much uncertainty in this situation. But why does that make the put option worth more money? Let’s start by looking at the basic Black-Scholes model.

    According to the Black Scholes model, the price of an option is affected by 5 main factors:

    Market Price of the Stock: When the stock price goes up, the value of the call option goes up, but the value of the put option goes down.

    Strike Price of the Stock: When the strike price goes up, the value of a call option goes down, but the value of a put option goes up.

    Interest rates: When interest rates go up, the present value of the strike price goes down. This makes the call option more valuable and the put option less valuable.

    The value of a call option and a put option goes down if the time until maturity or expiration goes down.

    The value of both the call option and the put option increases when the stock’s volatility increases.
    As you can see from the points above, volatility is the only thing that affects both call and put options in the same way. The time to expiration is the same, but it is a subset of volatility because a longer time to expiration makes people expect more volatility. But why does volatility have the same effect on calls and puts?

    It’s not hard to figure out why. Both calls and puts on an option are not the same. This means that the person who bought the option will only use it when it is good and will not pay the premium when the price goes down. This rule is true for both call and put options. The risk of going up or down is high when volatility is high. When there is a risk of going down, the person who bought the call option won’t pay the premium. When there is a chance of going up, the person who bought the call option will make a lot of money. Put options are also subject to the same rule. This is why call options and put options are worth more when the market is volatile.

    This shows that the value of the call option and the put option goes up when volatility increases, as long as all other factors stay the same.

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  • Why You Should Know Time Value Before Trading In Options

    When it comes to trading options, the time value of an option is one of the most basic and important things to understand. In technical terms, it is called “Theta,” which shows how an option’s value decreases over time. Before we get into the details of time value and time decay, let’s take a quick look back at what options are and how they work.

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    So, what are options really all about?

    As the word “option” suggests, it is a right that doesn’t have to be used. Unlike a futures contract, which is both a right and a duty, this is not the case. The buyer of the option has the right to buy or sell the underlying asset at an agreed-upon price (strike price). If the price change goes in the buyer’s favour, he will make money, but if the price change goes against him, he will not use the option. That doesn’t seem fair to the person who sold the option, does it?

    Not at all! Since the person who buys the option has a right but no obligation, the person who sells the option has a duty but no right. The seller won’t do that for free, that much is clear. The person who buys an option pays a certain fee to the person who sells the option for the right to do something without having to do it. This fee is called an “option premium,” and it is what gets traded on the NSE when you buy and sell options. The buyer of the option pays the option premium to the seller of the option as a reward for taking on the obligation without the right.

    Options can be either “call” or “put.”

    Call options give you the right to buy something, while put options give you the right to sell something. You buy a call option if you think the price of a stock will go up. If you think the price of a stock will go down, on the other hand, you will buy a put option. Even though it sounds easy, it’s not as easy as it sounds.

    Getting to the heart of an option’s intrinsic value and time value.

    Before you can understand the idea of time value, you need to know about the three types of options below.

    1. An In-The-Money (ITM) option is a contract for an option that has an intrinsic value that is greater than zero. If the market price of the Nifty is higher than the strike price, a call option on the Nifty is in the money. If the market price of the 17000 Nifty call option is Rs.70 and the spot Nifty is at 17100, then the intrinsic value of the Nifty call will be Rs. 100 (17100-17000). The option’s time value will be the remaining value, which is Rs.30. So, of the Rs.70 option premium that is being quoted on the market, Rs. 100 is due to intrinsic value and Rs. 30 is due to time value. If the spot price of the Nifty is lower than the strike price of the put option, the option is in the money.

    2.An “at the money” (ATM) option is a contract for an option that has a value of zero. If the market price of the Nifty is the same as the strike price, it will be an ATM for a call option on the Nifty. Since there is no intrinsic value, the time value is the only thing that makes the option worth anything.

    3. Out-of-the-Money (OTM) options are option contracts where the market price is lower than the strike price for a call option or higher than the strike price for a put option. According to our formula, the intrinsic value will be negative, but since the intrinsic value can’t be negative, we’ll treat it as zero. So, only time value will make up the option premium.

    At the beginning of the month, ATM options have the highest time value, followed by ITM options and then OTM options. In the long run, the time value of all three options will tend toward zero as the expiration date gets closer. Even though the OTM and ATM options themselves have no value, the option premium for ITM options will still be positive because they have intrinsic value.

    Why is time value such an important part of trading options?

    An option is a wasting asset because its time value tends to go to zero as its expiration date gets closer. This loss of time is also called “Theta.”

    Time and volatility are two of the most important parts of time value. For both call options and put options, the time value goes up as the time to expiration goes up. Even if the option is still Out of the Money, a rise in volatility can cause the time value to rise. The person who buys the options bets that volatility will make the time value go up, while the person who sells the option hopes that the time value will work in his favour so that the option expires worthless. This is the main idea behind trading with options.

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  • Factors That Decide An Option’s Premium

    Factors That Decide An Option’s Premium
    Any trader will tell you that in order to be successful, you have to understand and, more importantly, master the concept of option pricing and how to figure out its correct value.

    When you look at all the things that affect an option’s price, you can figure out what its real price is. Let’s look at oil as an example. The final prices of petroleum depend on consumer demand, the price of crude oil, the time of year, local and state taxes, refinery output, etc. If you want to know or figure out the price of an option before you buy or sell it, you can use a mathematical model like the Black Scholes model. You only need to think about the different parts of the model to figure out the right price.

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    Putting a price on an option depends on a number of things.

    The stock’s current price: If you’re interested in a call option that lets you buy shares of X company for, say, Rs 350 each, you’d probably be willing to pay more for that call when the stock is trading at Rs 320 instead of Rs 350. This is because the call option gets much closer to being ITM at Rs 49 than it would have been if it traded at Rs 40. Put options, on the other hand, do the opposite.

    The Strike Price: This is the price that a call owner has to pay to buy stock, while a put owner has to pay if he wants to sell his stock. This is like the example that was given above. Most of the time, it costs more to get the right to buy stock at Rs 350 than at Rs 380. The average investor would, of course, like to have the right to buy stocks at lower prices at any time of day. With the strike price going down, this makes calls cost more. In the same way, the value of puts goes up when the strike price goes up.

    Time before expiration: It’s important to remember that all options have a set amount of time they can be used and usually end on or after a certain date. Because of this, the value of an option goes down as time goes on. The more time there is until expiration, the more likely it is that you can make moves that will make you money.

    Interest rates: This is not a very important factor when figuring out the price of an option. When interest rates go up, so do the prices of call options. When the trader chooses the call option instead of the stock, any extra cash in his account should, at least in theory, earn him interest. This doesn’t really happen in the real world, but the basic idea makes sense.

    Dividends: When a stock trades but the owner doesn’t get any dividends, this is called “ex-dividend,” and the price of the stock goes down by the amount of the dividend that was due. When dividends go up, put values go up and call values go down.

    Volatility is thought to be the most important variable. In simple terms, volatility is the difference between the prices of stocks from one day to the next. It can also be called swings in the price of a stock. When compared to stocks that are less likely to change, volatile stocks are more likely to have a different strike price level. When investors make big moves, their chances of making money go up. So, options on stocks that change a lot are definitely more expensive than options on stocks that change less or not at all. So, it’s important to remember that even small changes in estimates of volatility have a big effect on the prices of options. Volatility is usually thought of as an estimate, and if you only have an estimate, especially of future volatility, it’s almost impossible to figure out the right option value.

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  • Buying Vs Selling Options

    Are there any tips and tricks for trading options that can help you decide when to buy and sell options. What should you do when trading call options? Here’s a guide for people who are just starting out with option trading. It tells you what factors can help you decide when to buy and when to sell an option.

    Price

    How do you decide if an option is priced too low or too high? Like with stocks, you will have to figure out what the option is really worth. Clearly, you can’t figure out the value of an option the same way you figure out the value of a stock. But there is a different model called the Black & Scholes model that has a complicated formula to help you figure out the intrinsic value of any option. If the price of an option is more than what it’s really worth, it’s overpriced and should be sold. If the price is less than what it’s really worth, it’s underpriced and you should buy it.

    Volatility

    This is an important thing to think about when deciding whether to buy options or sell them. Volatility is good for both call and put options because it makes the option more valuable if the price goes up, but it limits your risk if the price goes down. Even if the stock price stays the same, if volatility goes up, the value of the option can go up. When volatility is likely to go up, it is always best to buy options. When volatility is likely to go down, it is best to sell options.

    Events

    Can you imagine what would have happened if you had sold put options before the Lehman Brothers crisis or the Greek crisis? Before big events or important geopolitical risks, it’s always better to buy options instead of selling them. When you buy options, your loss is restricted to the premium you pay. If you sell options before something bad happens, you could lose all your money.

    Trend

    How you feel about the stock or index is a very important part of whether you should buy or sell an option. It would be ideal if you can determine if the stock will either go up decisively or go down decisively. In that case, you can buy either a call option or a put option, depending on what you want to do.

    Time decay

    This is a very important thing to think about when deciding whether to buy or sell an option. Remember that every option contract has a set date when it ends. Time hurts the person who buys the option and helps the person who sells the option. Most of the time, time decay is pretty stable in the first few days of the month. But as the expiration date gets closer, the time decay starts to happen more quickly. That means the value of the option starts to drop quickly. So, it’s not a good idea to buy options close to their expiration date unless you really want to take a risk and bet on volatility.
    A big choice is whether to buy the option or sell it. The more you think about a choice, the better your chances of making the right one.

  • What Exactly Are VAR And SPAN Margins?

    VaR and SPAN margins are related to every position you take in the stock market, especially if you trade in FnOs. But what exactly are they and how can you calculate them?

    Here’s everything you need to know.

    VaR is a way to measure the risk of a loss. Value-at-risk, or VaR, is a way to measure the downside risk or potential loss of a portfolio or investment over a certain amount of time. It helps analyse and estimate how much the minimum loss can be with a certain amount of confidence. Essentially, it is a number that tells you how risky a portfolio is.

    For example, VaR can tell us that an investor can expect to lose at least 2% of the total value of their portfolio on 1 out of every 15 days. So, it helps figure out how much money could be lost, how likely it is to lose that much money, and how long it could take.

    Statistical simulations can be used in a number of ways to figure out VaR. The risk management department of a company keeps a close eye on this parameter and tries to make sure that extremely risky trades are not taken.

    Margin SPAN

    On the equity markets, traders also need to have a certain amount of money set aside as “margin money” to help cover trade losses. But it is hard to guess how much of a margin is needed to cover all the losses if the market shows the worst-case scenario. As a result, the SPAN, which stands for Standardised Portfolio Analysis of Risk, is a standard way for traders to figure out how much margin money they need.

    When figuring out margin amounts for every single position, the SPAN system uses complicated algorithms and machine learning techniques. Each margin amount is equal to the most a single account can reasonably lose in a single trading day. It was made by the CME in 1988, and more than 50 exchanges around the world use SPAN as their official way to figure out how much margin they need. This margin is different for each security because each one comes with a different level of risk. For example, the SPAN margin for a single stock will be higher than that for an Index because single stocks are more risky and volatile.

    Risk management

    Every trader who is successful knows how important it is to manage risk, which is even more important than making money. With the help of VaR and SPAN calculations, a trader can keep a large number of contracts in their portfolio and stay away from serious margin calls.

    More brokers and financial institutions are now focusing on better ways to handle risks. Many of them require that, in addition to SPAN margin, which is collected when trades are started, an additional margin called Exposure margin to be collected to protect against liabilities caused by wild swings, rogue trades, or reactions to extreme stress in the market.

  • 5 Things To Keep In Mind Before Trading In Futures and Options

    Those who want to become derivative traders have a lot to gain from trading options and futures. Most of the time, people jump into FnO trading without knowing how it is different from trading on the spot market. If you’ve been thinking about trading futures and options, here are 5 things you need to know before entering the derivative markets.

    The best way to keep a track on your losses is to have the right tools in place and as one of the experienced brokerage firmsin India we have the best trading accounts for our users and offer lowest brokerage fees.

    1. Your losses aren’t limited to the money you put up as a margin
    When you trade on the spot market, the most you can lose is the amount of money you put in. In futures trading and options trading, on the other hand, you pay margins that are a lot smaller than the amount of capital you are putting at risk. This makes it easier to lose track of how big your possible loss really is. Before you start FnO trading, it’s helpful to remember this.

    2. Liquidity is easy to forget about

    When they first start trading options and futures, many traders don’t realise how important liquidity is. So, be careful not to make the same mistake. Even though it’s important to have a good options trading strategy or futures trading strategy, it’s just as important to make sure that the derivatives you’re trading in are liquid enough to support an exit.

    3. Moneyness of options

    This is something you really need to know before you start trading options. Out-of-the-money (OTM) options may be cheaper, but they often aren’t liquid enough, which is a big problem. So, the best chance isn’t always the one that costs the least. Make sure you find a good balance between affordability, profit, and cash flow.

    4. You can use FnO trading to hedge

    There are risks that come with trading in FnO. Beginners should always use a futures trading strategy or an options trading strategy along with a regular trade so that the FnO trade can protect the regular trade. This way, you can lessen the risk and learn more about how the derivative market works at the same time.

    5. Trading plans are important

    In derivatives trading, FnO trading strategies are very important. Different plans work best in different situations. For example, you can use covered calls if you’re worried about how much it will cost to keep a call on hold. On the other hand, if you want to make more money if the price goes down, you can use protective puts. Also, keep in mind that complicated and multi-layered plans are usually more expensive.

    So, before you start trading FnO, make sure you remember these things. For beginners, it’s helpful to have a reliable tool or platform to use, especially when it comes to making and analysing strategies. Here, our advanced options trading platform, Zebull, can come in handy. If you want to get into the derivatives market, you should check it out and use the helpful features.

    Don’t lose out on a chance to have the right tools in place, as one of the experienced brokerage firms in India we have the best trading accounts for our users and offer lowest brokerage fees.