Open Interest Monitor – 15 October 2025 - Silver (SLV) deep dive

Data through market close 2025-10-13

This monitor scans US-listed options markets to identify where open interest (OI) is concentrated, where skew and IV suggest positioning, and how this translates into sentiment signals. Each edition also features a focused options deep dive on a selected underlying—where we analyze volatility structure, positioning, and flow data to better understand what market participants may be anticipating.

SLV options deep dive: physical stress reshapes skew and positioning

The silver market is in the spotlight again, and not just because of its recent price action. While SLV, the iShares Silver Trust, has rallied sharply in recent weeks, it's the underlying physical market dynamics that are beginning to influence the shape of the options chain.

Tightness in the London bullion market has caused a rare dislocation: LBMA spot silver recently traded as much as $2 above COMEX futures, suggesting immediate delivery demand is outpacing available supply. One-month lease rates have spiked, and borrow fees for SLV shares remain elevated, placing the ETF on hard-to-borrow lists across brokers. This backdrop has important implications for options traders, particularly those focused on short-dated positioning and parity-sensitive structures.

Read more about Silver and Gold in Ole Hansen's article "Commodities weekly: Debasement fears the latest focus fuelling demand for gold and silver", link below, in the related articles section.

In this deep dive, we examine SLV options with a focus on the monthly expiries of 17 October and 21 November. These two maturities were selected because they currently carry the highest concentration of open interest, and together account for the majority of institutional flow visible on the chain. October offers a short-term lens into defensive hedging and positioning into this Friday's expiry, while November gives insight into medium-term sentiment around silver's next move.

Implied volatility and skew: downside dominates

The SLV volatility surface is currently shaped by elevated demand for downside protection. In both the October and November chains, implied volatility is significantly higher for puts than for calls at the same strikes.

At the 46 strike—roughly at-the-money—the 17 October put trades with an implied volatility of 62.9%, compared to just 53.8% for the equivalent call. For the 21 November expiry, the skew is even more extreme: the 46-strike put shows 52.9% IV versus 33.4% for the call.

This reflects two key dynamics. First, defensive hedging is in demand amid heightened physical-market uncertainty. Second, SLV is hard to borrow, with stock-loan fees ranging between 11% and 14% annualised. This borrow cost feeds directly into put-call parity, pushing put values higher relative to calls. For traders, it means early exercise risk rises on deep-in-the-money calls, and synthetics may not track cleanly.

Open interest clusters: 45 to 47 is the battlefield

Options positioning is heavily concentrated in the 45 to 47 strike range across both expiries:

• For 17 October, the 47 strike holds 145,700 contracts of open interest, followed by 107,400 at the 45 strike and 83,900 at 40.
• For 21 November, 133,000 contracts are stacked at the 45 strike, with 82,900 at 47 and 68,600 at 40.

This zone likely represents a key battleground for price into Friday's expiry and beyond. Notably, both expiries show "max pain" levels well below spot: $42.00 for October and $41.00 for November, reflecting an underlying tilt toward downside hedging.

Despite that tilt, the November chain is more call-heavy, with a put/call open interest ratio of just 0.84. This contrasts with October, which leans slightly put-heavy at 1.11. In practical terms, that suggests near-term caution but medium-term interest in further upside.

Expected moves and what they imply

Based on current option pricing:

• SLV is expected to move ±2.18 points (4.62%) by 17 October, placing an implied range of 45.08 to 49.44.
• For 21 November, the expected move is ±4.81 points (10.18%), projecting a wider range of 41.34 to 50.96.

These expected moves encapsulate the volatility premium currently baked into the chain and offer a roadmap for traders looking to structure short-term or medium-term views.

Takeaways for options traders

There are a few key implications for options traders:

1. High put skew creates opportunities for structured protection: Traders looking to hedge SLV exposure may find that debit put spreads remain expensive, but collars (selling a call to fund the hedge) are priced attractively given the rich skew.
2. Defined-risk bullish structures are more attractive than naked longs: Call spreads or diagonals allow upside participation while limiting exposure to elevated implied vols. With the 45–47 range acting as the gravitational zone, upside breakouts need to be sharp to justify long premium.
3. Be cautious with synthetics or deep ITM calls: Borrow costs and skew distort parity. Anyone trading synthetics or managing covered positions should be aware of early assignment or tracking errors.

Silver in focus, but more volatility lies ahead

Silver's options landscape is now being driven not just by price direction, but by stress in the underlying physical market. Tight supply, elevated borrow fees, and defensive positioning have reshaped the volatility surface and altered how traders should think about structure. Into Friday's expiry, the 45–47 zone remains the pivot, but eyes are also turning to November, where medium-term bets appear more constructive.

As always, be mindful of risk. With implied volatility already elevated, both premium buyers and sellers must carefully evaluate potential outcomes. The physical tightness may persist, but options prices already reflect a market on alert.

What’s driving open interest shifts this week?

With the silver deep dive complete, we now turn our attention to the broader market. Below is our weekly scan of the top 20 names by 1-month open interest growth, filtered for those with at least 100,000 in options volume.

These are the tickers where traders are most aggressively positioning, rolling, or hedging—and the shifts can offer early clues about narrative changes, speculative flows, or hedging intensity. From critical minerals and crypto miners to automation and AI, these OI movers often reflect more than just price action.

Top 20 names by open interest growth

Rank	Ticker	Name	Last	IV rank (%)	Total OI	1M OI % chg	Options vol	P/C vol
1	POET	Poet Technologies	5.32	65.3	167,200	52.4	268,900	0.29
2	NAK	Northern Dynasty	1.14	78.9	311,400	45.8	147,700	0.24
3	LAC	Lithium Americas	9.78	84.6	223,100	42.1	114,000	0.31
4	PATH	UiPath Inc	18.63	82.4	466,300	41.7	139,100	0.47
5	GLD	SPDR Gold Trust	181.22	64.2	2,338,400	17.8	223,600	0.71
6	IBIT	iShares Bitcoin ETF	113.68	56.8	1,439,500	15.6	187,400	0.36
7	CIFR	Cipher Mining	3.24	92.1	277,100	14.3	121,800	0.19
8	WULF	Terawulf Inc	2.87	49.2	198,700	14.0	118,000	0.21
9	BITF	Bitfarms Ltd	1.45	58.4	134,400	13.8	108,900	0.25
10	USAR	USA Rare Earth	7.32	67.1	208,100	13.2	113,000	0.49
11	UUUU	Energy Fuels	9.06	94.8	303,300	12.6	163,200	0.38
12	KVUE	Kenvue Inc	18.22	91.2	176,200	12.5	108,500	0.41
13	BMNR	Bitmine Immersion	0.82	44.5	118,800	12.4	101,000	0.28
14	ONDS	Ondas Holdings	1.16	36.3	102,600	12.2	103,900	0.26
15	BULL	Webull Corp	2.98	55.0	129,700	11.8	110,000	0.22
16	XBI	Biotech ETF	92.44	61.7	1,742,900	11.5	267,100	0.56
17	SLV	iShares Silver Trust	47.06	88.9	2,008,100	11.3	425,600	0.87
18	LLY	Eli Lilly	768.99	72.3	2,441,200	11.1	204,300	0.34
19	MARA	Marathon Digital	11.74	80.4	1,051,300	10.9	192,800	0.27
20	COIN	Coinbase Global	142.80	77.1	2,991,700	10.6	346,400	0.35

Note: Table now ranks US-listed underlyings by highest one‑month OI change, filtered to daily options volume > 100,000.

Column explainer (see glossary below)

• IV Rank (%): Position of current IV within its 1Y range
• Total OI: Aggregate open contracts (calls + puts)
• 1M OI % Chg: One-month percentage change in OI
• Options Vol: Most recent trading day total options volume
• P/C Vol: Put-to-call volume ratio (1-day snapshot)

What the data shows

Several interesting themes emerge from this list. At the top, we see a surge in open interest for smaller-cap, resource-linked names such as Poet Technologies (POET), Northern Dynasty (NAK), and Lithium Americas (LAC). These companies may be drawing attention due to geopolitical tensions—especially the escalating U.S.–China tariff war—which are heightening focus on domestic sourcing of critical minerals and strategic supply chains.

Another standout is UiPath (PATH), where a 41.7% increase in OI accompanies an IV rank of 82.4%—suggesting not just interest, but also rising uncertainty. The high implied volatility may reflect event risk, such as earnings or product developments.

Among ETFs and large caps, GLD (gold) continues to attract attention. With a 17.8% increase in OI, high volume, and a P/C ratio of 0.71 (meaning more puts than calls traded), it may indicate portfolio hedging activity in a volatile macro backdrop.

Crypto-linked assets also feature prominently: IBIT, Cipher Mining (CIFR), Terawulf (WULF), and Bitfarms (BITF) all show OI momentum, possibly reflecting continued institutional interest in digital asset proxies as Bitcoin trades above $110k.

Deeper takeaways

Volatility levels vary widely within this cohort. While UUUU, CIFR, and KVUE have implied volatility near the top of their annual range (IV ranks >90%), others like Ondas (ONDS) and WULF still sit at the lower end. This suggests that not all high-flow names come with expensive options—offering potential relative value for premium sellers.

Put/call ratios help differentiate between speculative upside positioning and hedging behavior. For instance, GLD and USAR show relatively high put/call volume ratios (>0.4), which may suggest more defensive activity, whereas most of the crypto and tech names remain call-heavy.

Unusual names like Webull Corp (BULL) and Bitmine Immersion Tech (BMNR) appear in the top 20, reinforcing the importance of screening by momentum rather than just market cap or headline exposure.

Final thoughts

Today’s list reflects a market in motion—not just focused on the usual giants, but driven by thematic and speculative undercurrents. Whether it’s energy transition, digital assets, or defensive hedges in gold, options activity reveals where investors are placing fresh bets. As always, this monitor aims to inform, not advise. Readers should combine flow insights with sound risk management and fundamental context.  

Glossary

• Ticker: the exchange-listed symbol for the underlying stock, ETF, or index. Indices are noted with a $ prefix in general use, but we map them to specific exchange codes in the ticker string.
• Name: the company or ETF name associated with the ticker. ETFs typically describe their focus, such as “S&P 500” or “20+ Year Treasury Bonds.”
• Last: The last traded price of the underlying asset (stock, ETF, or index). This gives a reference point for where the asset currently trades and helps identify how close it is to key strike levels in the option chain.
• IV Rank (%): Implied Volatility Rank (IV Rank) shows where current implied volatility sits relative to the past 12 months. A reading of 0% means IV is at its lowest point of the year; 100% means it's at the highest. Higher IV Rank suggests options are more expensive compared to recent history, which may favour premium-selling strategies.
• Total Open Interest (Total OI): This is the total number of open option contracts across both calls and puts for the underlying. It represents outstanding positions that have not yet been closed or exercised. High OI is often associated with deep liquidity and significant institutional interest.
• 1M OI % Change: Shows how much total open interest has changed over the past month. A rising figure can point to fresh positioning or increased speculation, while a falling number may indicate closed-out trades or reduced interest in the underlying.
• Options Volume: The number of option contracts traded during the most recent session. High volume relative to open interest may suggest new trades are being initiated. Sudden spikes often coincide with market-moving news or upcoming events.
• Put/Call Volume Ratio (P/C Vol): This ratio compares the volume of puts traded to calls on the same day. A ratio above 1.0 implies more puts were traded (often for downside protection), while a value below 1.0 shows call-heavy flow (often speculative or bullish). Extreme readings can highlight skewed sentiment or potential contrarian signals.

This material is marketing content and should not be regarded as investment advice. Trading financial instruments carries risks and historic performance is not a guarantee of future results. The instrument(s) referenced in this content may be issued by a partner, from whom Saxo receives promotional fees, payment or retrocessions. While Saxo may receive compensation from these partnerships, all content is created with the aim of providing clients with valuable information and options..

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Today’s Links

This is crazy stuff - a plot in NYC to disable mobile networks by mass accumulation of SIM cards and using equipment to send as many as 30 million texts a minute using special equipment. Supposedly a China link - huh?

Bloomberg’s worthy John Authers weighs in on French political situation and whether it can remain a slow burn (Putin’s present at the eastern Eurozone border is one factor preventing more outrage from other Eurozone powers), the JPY carry trade and Takaichi in Japan and more.

Seems very anecdotal, but supposedly US supermarket shoppers are going back to basics to save money - fits with indications that a significant swatch of medium to lower income levels are suffering here.

The latest Felder Report has its own links in turn on how we assess whether we are in an AI bubble and how it could possibly unwind if so.

Chart of the Day - EURUSD on tilt?

The JPY has stolen most of the limelight in currencies lately, especially on the weekend plunge on Takaichi’s ascension to the top of the LDP as she is seen as a monetary policy dove - fairly or not. Meanwhile, we have French political dysfunction to consider in Europe and this morning weak German factory orders the latest reminder of the country’s stranded and defunct heavy-industry based economic model. It feels like the euro could come under further pressure here if the market can pull its eyes away from Japan for a bit here - sending EURUSD on the correction path back towards at least 1.1500 if the 1.1573 range support breaks and perhaps lower still on a further general USD back-up.

 

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This content is marketing material and should not be considered investment advice. Trading financial instruments carries risks and historic performance is not a guarantee for future performance. The instrument(s) mentioned in this content may be issued by a partner, from which Saxo receives promotion, payment or retrocessions. While Saxo receives compensation from these partnerships, all content is conducted with the intention of providing clients with valuable options and information.

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