Traders Report Problems With Options Bid-Ask Spread Friday: What You Need To Know

Traders looking to trade options on Friday were met with surprise issues Friday. 

What Happened: A system issue from the Cboe CBOE was causing issues for stock trading platforms Friday.

Cboe, which stands for Chicago Board Options Exchange, is the largest U.S. options exchange by total volume and offers options for stocks, indexes and ETFs.

“Please be advised that Cboe is currently investigating potential issues impacting OPRA market data on all Cboe Options Exchanges. Will advise,” a Cboe status page said at 10:09 a.m. ET Friday morning.

Many traders posted on Twitter that their options trades would not process with the bid price above the asking price.

One trader shared that Interactive Brokers IBKR was investigating the matter.

TD Ameritrade, which is owned by The Charles Schwab Corporation SCHW was replying to users on Twitter with a statement about the issue.

“Thank you for reaching out. There was an exchange-side issue with the bid/ask on options this morning at the CBOE. It has now been resolved. Our trade desk is glad to help with any trades you have concerns with,” TD Ameritrade tweeted.

The issue appears to be resolved, with Cboe providing an updated status at 10:30 a.m. ET.

"Please be advised that issues impacting OPRA market data for all Cboe options exchanges has been resolved. All Cboe systems are operating normally," the post reads.

Related Link: Here's Which Brokerage Platforms Have Blocked Trading In Volatile Stocks 

Why It’s Important: The issues with options trades on Friday come as investors experience one of four quad witching days.

Quad witching occurs once per quarter on the third Friday of March, June, September and December.

The date marks the expiration of stock index futures, stock index options, stock options and single stock futures. For more on quad witching, watch today’s “PreMarket Prep” episode below.

Benzinga reached out to the Cboe for comment. 

"The Tradedesk is not able to comment for Compliance reasons. Please contact your Broker/Dealer for any inquiries about your ability to interact with the market," Trade Desk Manager for U.S. Options Ryan Stone said. 

The Chicago Board Options Exchange. Photo via Shutterstock.