OptionMetrics has launched IvyDB TradeFlow, a new data product built for institutional users who need to see which side of the options market is initiating trades.

The company positions the dataset around three use cases: buy-side versus sell-side order flow classification, retail trading behavior, and participation in zero-days-to-expiration (0DTE) options trading. Each of those three addresses a live question on institutional desks.

Order flow classification is the core function. TradeFlow separates buying pressure from selling pressure in listed options, giving analysts a systematic view of directional demand rather than a raw volume tally. For desks that already run volatility analytics on OptionMetrics' flagship IvyDB historical databases, the new product extends that workflow from pricing data into flow data — a different input for execution and positioning analysis.

The retail behavior component speaks to a structural shift that has run since 2020. Institutional participants have lacked a clean instrument for measuring how retail order flow behaves in options, and vendors have raced to fill that gap. A dedicated dataset turns an assertion about retail participation into something that can be measured, backtested and monitored over time.

The 0DTE coverage targets what has become one of the most consequential volume trends in US equity options. Same-day-expiry contracts now account for a substantial share of volume in index options, and 0DTE activity carries specific risk characteristics: gamma exposure concentrates intraday, and hedging flows from short-delta positions can amplify moves in the underlying. A dataset that identifies who participates in 0DTE trading — and on which side — gives risk and execution teams an input they have largely had to proxy until now.

What the launch does not do, based on the announcement, is provide analytics or strategy layers on top of the data. TradeFlow is a database. The interpretation — whether a given flow pattern predicts underlying movement, or whether retail 0DTE participation signals crowded positioning — remains the buy-side quant's job. OptionMetrics supplies the raw classification; desks supply the models.

That division of labor matches how OptionMetrics has built its franchise. IvyDB became the industry standard for historical options prices and implied volatility because it delivered clean, comprehensive data rather than opinion. TradeFlow extends the same philosophy to a new data type.

For technology teams, the practical questions are integration ones: delivery format, history depth, update frequency and coverage across US-listed classes. Those specifications will determine whether TradeFlow slots into existing quant research pipelines or requires new infrastructure.

The competitive context matters too. Order flow analytics in options has drawn multiple vendors as 0DTE volume and retail participation reshaped the market's structure. OptionMetrics enters with an installed base of institutional subscribers who already license its volatility databases, which lowers the adoption barrier.

Whether TradeFlow becomes as embedded as IvyDB will depend on data quality at the level desks actually interrogate: how reliably the buy/sell classification holds up against known events, and how stable the retail-versus-institutional split proves over time. OptionMetrics says the product is available now; institutional uptake over the coming quarters will show whether the flow data meets the standard its pricing data set.