Trading equity options can help generate income, protect against losses, and speculate on the stock market.

Access to leverage-based trading strategies using covered Calls and cash-covered Puts.


Powered by exchange & trading app for digital securities

exchange & trading app for digital securities
U.S. PERSONS MAY NOT WRITE, BUY OR SELL OPTIONS ON UPSTREAM. U.S. PERSONS MAY NOT BUY OR SELL WARRANTS ON UPSTREAM.
Options trading entails significant risk and is not appropriate for all investors.

Key Features of Upstream Options


American style options with weekly expiry calendar (max. 52 weeks ahead).

Simple options writing user interface with zero writing/listing commissions.

Open, best bid/offer options limit-orderbook; and, no designated market makers.


1% trading fee for executed options trades ($premium * num. contracts * 100).

1% trading fee exercising options to buy/sell the underlying-equity.

Simple, intuitive options-chain browsing and options-portfolio management interface.


Cashless exercise (when sufficient underlying-equity liquidity is available)

Guaranteed writers’ underlying-equity available on exercise of a Call option by holder.


Guaranteed writers’ funds available on exercise of a Put option by holder.


Underlying-equity liquidity provision using equity Market Pools.

No short selling using naked calls or naked puts, and no margin trading or margin calls.

No automatic option exercise at expiry for in the money options; self-directed only.


Call warrants allow investors to speculate on the market by buying the right to acquire a stock at a certain (strike) price before the Warrant expiry date.

Warrants are similar to Call Options with the key difference being that the investor buys Warrants directly from the company, thereby funding the company's growth.


Powered by exchange & trading app for digital securities

exchange & trading app for digital securities
U.S. PERSONS MAY NOT WRITE, BUY OR SELL OPTIONS ON UPSTREAM. U.S. PERSONS MAY NOT BUY OR SELL WARRANTS ON UPSTREAM.
Options trading entails significant risk and is not appropriate for all investors.

Key Features of Upstream Warrants


American style warrant exercise with company-defined expiry dates.

Upstream warrant writing service for companies with zero writing/listing commissions.

Open, best bid/offer warrants limit-orderbook; and, no designated market makers.


1% trading fee for executed warrants trades ($premium * num. contracts * 100).

1% trading fee for exercising warrants to buy the underlying-equity.

Simple, intuitive options-chain browsing and warrants-portfolio management interface.


Cashless exercise (when sufficient underlying-equity liquidity is available).

Guaranteed underlying-equity available from company on exercise of a warrant by holder.


Instant payment of funds to company on exercise of a warrant by holder.


Underlying-equity liquidity provision using equity Market Pools.

No short selling using naked calls or naked puts, and no margin trading or margin calls.

No automatic option exercise at expiry for in the money options; self-directed only.


How to Trade Options on Upstream

Options trading entails significant risk and is not appropriate for all investors.

Upstream is a self-directed trading platform. Upstream does not automatically exercise in-the-money (ITM) options at expiry on behalf of an Upstream trader.

It is the Upstream option holder’s sole responsibility to monitor the market and decide whether to exercise their rights prior to contract expiry, pursuant to the terms of the option or warrant contract held in their Upstream portfolio.

Failure to exercise an in-the-money option or warrant prior to expiry will lead to the loss of the entire investment, i.e., the premium paid, and the loss of any potential unrealized profits-on-exercise.

Upstream shall not be liable for any losses incurred by an Upstream trader’s failure to exercise in-the-money options or warrants prior to expiry.

Note, from a trader’s perspective, references to holding Call Options applies equally to holding Call Warrants. Traders should choose to hold the option or warrant that best suit their needs around premium, strike, and expiry.

Upstream does not permit the short selling of equities and does not permit the writing of naked call options or naked put options. However, naming terminology for options participants may sometimes refer to the writer of a covered call, or the writer of a short put, as being “short”.

Therefore, (i) writing covered calls (or call warrants) on Upstream requires the underlying assets to be held, and blocked from onward sale, ensuring the option writer (or warrant issuer) is never short stock, and (ii) writing puts requires that sufficient cash is held, and blocked from onward use or withdrawal, ensuring the writer is never short cash, to meet their obligations should their option or warrant be assigned prior to expiry.

If the holder of an option or warrant exercises their right to buy (call) or sell (put) stock, Upstream guarantees that the shares (call) and the cash (put) is available without delay and will settle immediately upon exercise.

Upstream does not permit Long-Term Equity Anticipation Securities (LEAPS), i.e., options contracts with an expiration date longer than one year.

Upstream permits call warrants with an expiration date longer than one year, however, such warrants may not be used to collateralize the writing of a covered call option (i.e., synthetic covered call or poor man’s covered call).


Options Trading Strategies

Options trading entails significant risk and is not appropriate for all investors.

Upstream does not assert that the following sample options trading strategies are accurate or will succeed. These strategies are for educational and informational purposes only. All options trades are entered-into by an Upstream user entirely at the users own risk.

New options traders could start with writing and selling covered calls. Covered calls are a natural bridge for investors because they combine stock ownership with options trading to generate income on long equity positions.

As a next step, long calls and long puts are simple single-leg strategies that may offer traders a cost-effective, risk-defined alternative to buying or selling stock.

Traders may use more complex multi-let strategies such as spreads. Spreads typically have defined risk and limited profit potential.

Sample Strategies (an aid to learning how to trade options on Upstream)

Long Call

Long Call

Outlook - Bullish

A long call is purchased when the buyer believes the price of the underlying asset will increase by at least the cost of the premium on or before the expiry date.

Risk profile

Risk is limited to the cost of the option. Profit potential is unlimited.

Entry

Buy-to-open (BTO), purchase a call option contract.

Exit

(a) Underlying price is up: (i) Sell-to-close (STC), sell the call option contract for a profit, or (ii) exercise the in-the-money (ITM) call option and sell acquired shares at a profit.

(b) Underlying price is down: Option expires out-of-the-money (OTM). Trader loses the price paid for the call option.

(c) Underlying price is unchanged: Option expires at-the-money (ATM). Trader loses the price paid for the call option.

Long Put

Long Put

Outlook - Bearish

A long put is purchased when the buyer believes the price of the underlying asset will decrease by at least the cost of the premium on or before the expiry date.

Risk profile

Risk is limited to the cost of the option. Profit potential is unlimited until the underlying asset reaches $0.

Entry

Buy-to-open (BTO), purchase a put option contract.

Exit

(a) Underlying price is up: Option expires out-of-the-money (OTM). Trader loses the price paid for the call option.

(b) Underlying price is down: (i) Sell-to-close (STC), sell the put option contract for a profit, or (ii) buy shares at market price below the strike, and immediately exercise the in-the-money (ITM) put option to sell such shares at strike.

(c) Underlying price is unchanged: Option expires at-the-money (ATM). Trader loses the price paid for the put option.

Covered Call

Covered Call

Outlook - Moderately Bullish

A covered call is sold when the writer believes the price of their underlying asset will remain unchanged or increase on or before the expiry date. Selling a covered call generates income during the holding period and lowers the original position’s cost basis.

Risk profile

Selling a covered call limits the profit potential of a rise in the price of the underlying asset above the strike and does not eliminate the downside risk. However, it helps to reduce the risk in holding the underlying asset by the price of the premium received.

Entry

Sell-to-open (STO), write & sell a call against shares of long stock with strike above the current price of the underlying asset.

Exit

(a) Underlying price is above strike: Seller is assigned and sells their shares at strike, below the market price (aka, called away).

(b) Underlying price is down: Option expires out-of-the-money (OTM). Seller profits by the premium received when they sold the put option.

(c) Underlying price is unchanged or below strike: Option expires out-of-the-money (OTM). Seller profits by the price paid when they sold the put option.

(d) Buy-to-close (BTC): Seller buys a long call at the same strike and expiry, thereby neutralizing their assignment risk if the underlying price rises above strike.

Short Put

Short Put

Outlook - Bullish

A short put is sold when the seller believes the price of the underlying asset will be above the strike price on or before the expiry date. Selling a short put generates income.

Risk profile

Profit potential is limited to the amount of cash received when the put is sold. The risk is undefined until the stock reaches $0.

Entry

Sell-to-open (STO), write & sell a short put against cash held by writer with strike below the current price of the underlying asset.

Exit

(a) Underlying price is above strike: Option expires out-of-the-money (OTM). Seller profits by the premium received when they sold the put option.

(b) Underlying price is below strike: Seller is assigned and buys the shares at strike, i.e., above the current market price.

(c) Underlying price is unchanged: Option expires out-of-the-money (OTM). Seller profits by the premium received when they sold the put option.

(d) Buy-to-close (BTC): Seller buys a short put at the same strike and expiry, thereby neutralizing their assignment risk if the underlying price falls below strike.

Collar

Collar

Outlook - Neutral Hedge

The goal of the collar strategy is to fund the cost of the long put with the credit from the covered call. A collar creates a risk-defined position with limited profit potential and are typically used by investors who hold long stock and want defined risk.

Risk profile

The compromise of limiting the upside profit potential in holding the stock is offset by the downside risk protection of holding the put. A collar strategy has a defined maximum profit and loss. If the stock is between the two levels at expiration, both the call and put options will expire worthless.

Entry

Simultaneously, (i) sell-to-open (STO), write & sell, a covered call with strike above the current price of the underlying asset and (ii) buy-to-open (BTO) a long put with strike below the current price of the underlying asset, with both the call and the put having the same expiry.

Exit

(a) Underlying price is above call-strike: Covered call is assigned, and (long) shares are sold at strike. Long put is out-of-the-money (OTM) expires.

(b) Underlying price is below put-strike: Long put is in-the-money (ITM), is exercised, and (long) shares are sold at strike. Covered call is out-of-the-money (OTM) and expires.

(c) Underlying price is between the two levels: Both the call and put options will expire out-of-the-money (OTM), and the investor may choose to initiate another collar strategy with a later expiry.

Long Call Spread

Long Call Spread

Outlook - Bullish

The long call spread strategy looks to take advantage of a price increase of the underlying asset before expiry.

Risk profile

The long call spreads cost is the price paid for the long call minus the premium received for the covered call. Risk is limited to the net price paid. The maximum profit potential is the spread width minus the entry cost.

Entry

Simultaneously, (i) buy-to-open (BTO) a long call, and (ii) sell-to-open (STO), write & sell, a covered call with strike above the price of the long call with both options having the same expiry. Typically, the price of a long call will be higher because of its strike being lower.

Exit

(a) Underlying price is below long call-strike: Long call expires out-of-the-money (OTM). Covered call expires, unassigned. The loss on this long call spread is the premium paid buying the long call minus the income earned selling the (cheaper) covered call. This is not a profitable trade.

(b) Underlying price is between the two levels: Long call is in-the-money (ITM) and can either (i) be sold for a profit, or (ii) exercised. Covered call expires, unassigned. This is a profitable trade.

(c) Underlying price is above the covered call-strike: Long call is in-the-money (ITM) and can either (i) be sold for a profit, or (ii) exercised. Covered call is assigned and shares sold below market. This is a profitable trade.

Short Call Spread

Short Call Spread

Outlook - Bearish

The short call spread strategy looks to take advantage of a price decrease of the underlying asset before expiry is entered when the seller believes the price of the underlying asset will be below the covered call option’s strike on or before the expiry.

Risk profile

The short call spreads cost is the price paid for the short call minus the premium received for the covered call. Risk is limited to the net price paid. The maximum profit potential is the spread width minus the entry cost.

Entry

Simultaneously, (i) sell-to-open (STO), write & sell, a covered call, and (ii) buy-to-open (BTO) a long call with strike above the price of the covered call with both options having the same expiry. Typically, the price of a covered call will be higher because of its strike being lower.

Exit

(a) Underlying price is below covered call-strike: Covered call expires, unassigned. Long call expires out-of-the-money (OTM). The profit on this short call spread is the premium paid buying the (cheaper) long call minus the income earned selling the covered call. This is a profitable trade.

(b) Underlying price is between the two levels: Covered call is assigned. Long call is out-of-the-money (OTM) and expires. This is not a profitable trade.

(c) Underlying price is above long call-strike: Covered call is assigned. Long call is in-the-money (ITM) and can either (i) be sold for a profit, or (ii) exercised. This is not a profitable trade.

Long Put Spread

Long Put Spread

Outlook - Bullish

Seller believes the price of the underlying asset will be above the short put option’s strike price on or before the expiry.

Risk profile

A long put spread is made up of a selling a short put option and buying a (cheaper) long put option at a lower strike price. The credit received is the maximum potential profit for the trade.

Entry

Simultaneously, (i) sell-to-open (STO), write & sell, a short put, and (ii) buy-to-open (BTO) a put with strike below the price of the short put with both options having the same expiry.

Exit

(a) Underlying price is below long put-strike: Long put is in-the-money (ITM) and can either (i) be sold for a profit, or (ii) exercised. Short put will be assigned, and shares bought. This is not a profitable trade.

(b) Underlying price is between the two levels: Long put is out-of-the-money (OTM) and expires. Short put is assigned. This is not a profitable trade.

(c) Underlying price is above the short put-strike: Long put is out-of-the-money (OTM) and expires. Short put expires, unassigned. This is a profitable trade.

Short Put Spread

Short Put Spread

Outlook - Bearish

The strategy looks to take advantage of a price decrease from the underlying asset before expiry.

Risk profile

A short put spread is made up of buying a long put option a selling a (cheaper) short put option at a lower strike price.

Entry

Simultaneously, (i) buy-to-open (BTO) a long put, and (ii) sell-to-open (STO), write & sell, a short put with strike below the price of the long put with both options having the same expiry.

Exit

(a) Underlying price is below short put-strike: Long put is in-the-money (ITM) and can either (i) be sold for a profit, or (ii) exercised. Short put will be assigned, and shares bought. This is a profitable trade.

(b) Underlying price is between the two levels: Long put is in-the-money (ITM) and can either (i) be sold for a profit, or (ii) exercised. Short put expires, unassigned. This is a profitable trade.

(c) Underlying price is above the long put-strike: Long put is out-of-the-money (OTM) and expires. Short put expires, unassigned. This is not a profitable trade.

Short Straddle

Short Straddle

Outlook - Neutral

The strategy looks to take advantage of little or no movement of the underlying asset.

Risk profile

Short straddles are a neutral strategy with undefined-risk and limited profit potential. Short straddles require minimal movement from the underlying stock to be profitable. The combined credit of the covered call and short put defines the maximum profit for the trade. The maximum risk is undefined beyond the credit received.

Entry

Simultaneously, (i) sell-to-open (STO) , write & sell, a covered call, and (ii) sell-to-open (STO), write & sell, a short put the same expiry and the same strike, which is typically at-the-money (ATM) of the underlying asset.

Exit

(a) Underlying price is below strike: Covered call expires, unassigned. Short put is assigned. This is not a profitable trade.

(b) Underlying price is at the strike: Covered call is at-the-money (ATM) and expires. Short put is at-the-money (ATM) and expires. This is a profitable trade.

(c) Underlying price is above the strike: Covered call is assigned. Short put expires, unassigned. This is not a profitable trade.

Short Strangle

Short Strangle

Outlook - Neutral

The strategy looks to take advantage of little or no movement of the underlying asset.

Risk profile

Short straddles are a neutral strategy with undefined-risk and limited profit potential. Short straddles require minimal movement from the underlying stock to be profitable. The combined credit of the covered call and short put defines the maximum profit for the trade. The maximum risk is undefined beyond the credit received.

Entry

Simultaneously, (i) sell-to-open (STO) , write & sell, an out-of-the-money (OTM) covered call above the current stock price, and (ii) sell-to-open (STO), write & sell, an out-of-the-money (OTM) short put below the current stock price with the same expiry.

Exit

(a) Underlying price is below short put-strike: Covered call expires, unassigned. Short put is assigned. This is not a profitable trade.

(b) Underlying price is between the short put-strike and the covered call-strike: Covered call is at-the-money (ATM) and expires. Short put is at-the-money (ATM) and expires. This is a profitable trade.

(c) Underlying price is above the covered call-strike: Covered call is assigned. Short put expires, unassigned. This is not a profitable trade.

Long Straddle

Long Straddle

Outlook - Neutral

To hedge a long call, an investor may purchase a put with the same strike price and expiry, thereby creating a long straddle. If the underlying stock price falls below the strike price, the put will experience a gain in value and help offset the loss of the long call. A long put may also be hedged in the same way, by buying a long call with the strike and expiry.

Risk profile

Hedging the risk of the long call, this strategy adds cost to the original trade long call and widens the break-even price.

Entry

Buy a long put with the same strike and expiry as the long call.

Exit

(a) Underlying price is below strike: Long call expires, unassigned. Long put is in-the-money (ITM) and can either (i) be sold for a profit, or (ii) exercised. This is a profitable trade.

(b) Underlying price is at the strike: Long call and long put expire. This is a not profitable trade.

(c) Underlying price is above the strike: Long call is in-the-money (ITM) and can either (i) be sold for a profit, or (ii) exercised, Long put expires, unassigned. This is a profitable trade.