Options traders are piling into deep out-of-the-money “disaster” puts on the Invesco QQQ Trust ETF, signaling growing unease that the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 Index could soon tumble. Bearish hedges are being accumulated at the fastest pace since the 2022 bear market, according to Bloomberg, with the cost of downside protection jumping as demand swells. The rush for insurance is apparent across derivative markets. A block of roughly 1,000 February $520 QQQ puts changed hands at $16.20 apiece, while the three-month risk-reversal—a gauge of appetite for puts over calls—has moved into the 93rd percentile of the past three years. Jeff Jacobson, head of derivative strategy at BNP Paribas, said clients are looking to guard against a sharp reversal after a powerful rally in megacap technology shares. Skepticism is intensifying just as the underlying ETF posts its first five-day losing streak of 2025, slipping about 3.4% and recording its steepest two-day decline since 7 April. The slide has punctured a run that had lifted the Nasdaq 100 roughly 40% from its early-April lows, when President Donald Trump’s 145% tariff on Chinese goods sent shockwaves through risk assets. Despite the setback, big-tech leadership remains pronounced: the Bloomberg Magnificent 7 Index—covering Microsoft, Apple, Nvidia, Alphabet, Amazon, Meta Platforms and Tesla—is still up nearly 50% since 8 April. Whether the current wave of hedging presages a deeper pullback or merely marks prudent profit protection will hinge on forthcoming economic data and corporate earnings, traders say.