Nasdaq ISE lets Nasdaq-100 hedges expire on weekdays

For traders tied to the Nasdaq-100 Index, or NDX, the calendar just got a lot more useful. In Washington, the Securities and Exchange Commission approved Nasdaq ISE’s plan to list A.M.-settled options on NDX that can expire on any Monday through Friday, with carveouts for the third Friday of the month and dates that already line up with an end-of-month expiration, plus options that expire on the last trading day of the month.

Comment deadline: 2026-05-08 Effective date: June 16, 2026

A.M.-settled means the contract’s final value is set in the morning, at the open, instead of at the close. That gives traders a cleaner fit when they are trying to cover a single event, a short stretch of market risk or a position that does not run neatly to the end of the month.

A tighter calendar

The exchange is widening the menu without turning every square on the calendar into a new contract. Nasdaq ISE can add these options on any weekday except the third Friday of the month and days that already coincide with an end-of-month expiration.

If both a weekly expiration and a month-end expiration would fall on the same day, the month-end contract takes priority. The structure stays familiar, but the timing becomes more exact, which matters when the gap between one trading day and the next can carry real risk.

Built for shorter hedges

The practical effect is more precise hedging. Portfolio managers, market makers and broker-dealers can line up protection more closely with earnings, economic data, rebalancing or month-end exposure instead of settling for the nearest monthly date.

That does not create a brand-new kind of market bet. It gives existing traders a finer clock to work with, and in options, timing is often the difference between a hedge that fits and one that leaves too much daylight.

Agency: SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION Docket ID: SR-ISE-2026-22 RIN: 34-105696 CFR parts: 17 CFR 240.19b-4 Comment deadline: 2026-05-08 Effective date: June 16, 2026