BackQuant Glossary
Contango
A market structure in which longer-dated contracts trade at higher prices (or higher implied volatility) than nearer-dated. In futures, contango is the normal carrying-cost state. In options IV term structure, contango is the default and reflects cumulative uncertainty over time.
Related terms
Futures
A standardized contract to buy or sell an asset at a set price on a future date. Crypto futures with fixed expiries exist alongside perpetual futures (perps) which never expire. Quarterly futures concentrate the most open interest.
IV Term Structure
The curve of implied volatility plotted across expiries at a fixed moneyness. Upward-sloping (contango) is the normal state. Downward-sloping (backwardation) signals an imminent event or active market stress. Term-structure shifts often front-run direction.
Long
A position that profits when price rises. Buying spot, going long a perp, owning a call, or being short a put are all long positions. Opposite of short.
Call Option
A contract giving the holder the right (but not the obligation) to buy the underlying at a fixed strike price before or at expiry. Buyers profit when the underlying rises above the strike plus premium paid. Sellers collect premium and have an obligation to deliver if exercised.
Call Wall
The strike with the largest concentration of dealer-positive gamma above the current spot price. Acts as resistance because dealers progressively sell underlying as price approaches it. Call walls are often the dominant ceiling into options expiry.
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