What-if analysis

The what-if analysis is one of the most powerful tools in Option Panel.

The risk graph lets you simulate how your trade’s P/L profile would evolve under different market conditions. The what-if analysis takes things further: in addition to market conditions, you can also simulate changes to the trade itself by adding or removing positions in Draft state — without executing any real transaction.

This gives you a completely risk-free way to analyse what your position would look like if you rolled it, scaled it up, or added a hedge, before committing any capital.

Example 1 — Adding more contracts

We start with an existing bull credit spread and simulate adding more contracts.

1. Select Trade all.
2. In the order ticket, choose Simulate instead of executing directly.

The new positions are added to the trade immediately, but in Draft state. This lets you analyse their impact on your Greeks and risk profile before deciding whether to go ahead. You can toggle between the real and simulated state simply by enabling or disabling the Draft positions, either all at once or one at a time.

If you decide not to proceed, delete the Draft positions and the trade returns to its original state.

Example 2 — Simulating a roll

We simulate rolling the same trade.

1. From the order ticket, simulate closing the current positions.
2. Open the options chain and select the new options for the next expiration.

The new options are also added in Draft state. You can see in real time what the trade would look like after the roll, and compare the risk profile before and after. Once your analysis is done, delete the Draft positions and the trade returns to its original state.

Example 3 — Adding a protective put

We simulate adding a protective put to reduce the trade’s delta.

1. Open the options chain and add a put in Draft state.
2. Check how the delta looks.
3. If not satisfied, go back to the options chain and drag the position to a different strike.
4. In the trade detail view, verify the delta now reflects the adjustment.
5. When happy with the result, execute the transaction. The position automatically changes its status from Draft to Open, becoming a permanent part of the trade.