Earlier this month, we published a Special Report on CleanSpark, Inc. (NASDAQ: CLSK) after unusual options activity led us to investigate a much larger story developing beneath the surface. While the market largely viewed CleanSpark as a Bitcoin miner, our research focused on the strategic value of its power portfolio and the possibility that its infrastructure could support growing demand from AI and hyperscale data-centre operators. Since then, the stock has continued to strengthen, while new options activity suggests traders are still positioning for further upside.
READ THE ORIGINAL REPORT:
The AI Power Bottleneck: How Unusual Options Activity Uncovered a Potential Hyperscaler Catalyst
https://www.setyourstop.com/the-ai-power-bottleneck-how-unusual-options-activity-uncovered-a-potential-hyperscaler-catalyst/
Fresh Positioning Appears in the $19 Calls
Today, the SetYourStop Options Scanner flagged aggressive buying in the August 28 $19 calls.
More than 2,100 contracts traded against only 105 contracts of existing open interest, meaning the volume was roughly 20 times larger than the positions already open at that strike. Approximately 96% of the contracts traded at the ask, indicating buyers were willing to pay the offered price to gain exposure.
That combination matters.
Large volume relative to open interest can suggest fresh positioning, while heavy activity at the ask generally points to aggressive call buyers rather than passive orders. The increase in open interest during the next session will help confirm how much of the activity represented newly opened positions.
Additional bullish activity later appeared in the August 21 $20 calls, where approximately 1,600 contracts traded and close to 80% of the volume executed at the ask. This strike already had substantial open interest, making the $19 call activity the cleaner unusual signal, but the additional demand near $20 reinforced the area traders were targeting.
Why the $19 and $20 Strikes Matter
The significance of today’s activity becomes clearer when it is compared with CleanSpark’s broader options positioning.
Market makers who sell options often hedge their risk by buying or selling shares of the underlying stock. Delta estimates how much stock exposure an option currently carries. Gamma measures how quickly that delta changes as the share price moves.
In simple terms, delta helps estimate the size of the hedge, while gamma helps estimate how quickly that hedge may need to be adjusted.
CleanSpark’s current options structure identifies three important areas:
$15 is the Put Wall.
This is the largest concentration of put-related positioning and may act as an area of support.
$16 is the Call Wall.
This is the largest nearby concentration of call gamma and represents the first major options-related hurdle.
$20 is the next major concentration.
Beyond $16, the gamma profile becomes relatively light before building significantly again near $20. Delta Exposure also increases around that level.
This is what makes today’s buying in the $19 and $20 calls particularly interesting. Traders were not simply buying calls near the current share price. They were positioning near the next major cluster of Gamma and Delta Exposure.
What Could Happen Above the $16 Call Wall?
As CLSK rises toward and through a major call strike, the delta of those calls can increase. Depending on how dealers are positioned, market makers who sold the calls may need to purchase additional shares to remain hedged.
That buying does not create the initial breakout. The stock must first attract enough normal demand to overcome resistance. However, once price begins moving through a heavily positioned strike, dealer hedge adjustments can sometimes add fuel to the move.
A sustained advance above $16 could therefore become important for two reasons.
First, it would clear the largest nearby concentration of call-related resistance.
Second, there is comparatively less options positioning between $16 and the next major cluster near $20. If momentum continues through that lighter area, the need to adjust hedges on higher-strike calls could provide an additional source of demand.
This is the basic mechanism behind a potential gamma squeeze: rising share prices increase call deltas, dealers may buy more stock to hedge, and that additional buying can further strengthen the move.
That outcome is possible, not guaranteed. Public Gamma and Delta Exposure charts estimate dealer positioning; they do not reveal every market maker’s actual book. Dealers may also be positioned through spreads or other hedges that change the expected response.
The Broader Options Market Remained Call-Heavy
Today’s activity was not limited to the two unusual trades.
CLSK recorded a 0.29 put/call volume ratio, meaning more than three calls traded for every put. Approximately $6.11 million in call premium traded compared with roughly $1.02 million in put premium.
A low put/call ratio does not prove that every call was purchased as a bullish bet. Options can also be sold, hedged, or used as part of multi-leg strategies. However, when call-heavy volume appears alongside aggressive ask-side buying and unusually high volume relative to prior open interest, the overall picture becomes more constructive.
Following the Footprints
The original CleanSpark report began with unusual options activity. That clue led us toward the company’s power assets, its potential role in AI infrastructure, and a possible hyperscaler catalyst.
Today, the options market delivered another clue.
Fresh activity appeared in the $19 calls, additional demand developed at $20, and both strikes sit near the next major concentration of dealer exposure. At the same time, CLSK remains above its Gamma Flip near $14.75, with the $15 Put Wall below the stock and the $16 Call Wall representing the next major test.
The message from the data is not that $20 is guaranteed.
The message is that unusual call buying, Gamma Exposure, and Delta Exposure are all beginning to converge around the same area of the options chain.
That alignment is what makes the setup worth following.
A sustained breakout above $16 could become an important technical signal, while the $15 area provides a clearly defined level to monitor on the downside. Together, those levels create a practical framework for watching the setup develop and reacting with a plan rather than chasing price after the move is already underway.
These are not instructions on where to buy or sell. They are levels that can help investors understand where the setup may strengthen, where it may weaken, and where attention should be focused as new information develops.
That is the goal of SetYourStop.
We provide the research. You create the plan that best fits your strategy and risk tolerance.
Someone always knows something. We look for the clues in the data before they become obvious.
Disclaimer
SetYourStop.com is a research company. We do not tell members what to buy or sell, nor do we make predictions about future market events.
Options activity, Gamma Exposure, Delta Exposure, put and call walls, and estimated dealer hedging requirements are analytical tools. They are based on available options data and assumptions about how market makers may be positioned. They do not reveal the complete intent of an options trade or guarantee that dealers will buy or sell shares in the manner described.
Unusual options activity may represent a directional trade, a hedge, a spread, the closing of an existing position or part of a broader strategy. Changes in open interest may provide additional confirmation but cannot establish a trader’s identity or motivation.
This report is provided for educational and research purposes only. Every investor is responsible for conducting their own due diligence, developing an appropriate plan, and managing risk according to their own objectives. Markets are uncertain, and all investments involve risk.
