A mystery trader just made over $200M betting on Volatility(businessinsider.com.au) |
A mystery trader just made over $200M betting on Volatility(businessinsider.com.au) |
Their payoff diagram from this position w.r.t. the VIX settlement value at the time that their options expire increases linearly from 15 to 25, then decreases linearly (with a slope of the same magnitude) past that point. Their profit will be maximized if the VIX settles at exactly 25, while they will lose money if the VIX settles above 35.
Of course, it's also possible that this "mystery trader" is using this position as a hedge against direct or indirect VIX exposure in the remainder of their portfolio.