It will come as a surprise to exactly nobody that the Fed's latest quarterly Household Debt and Credit report reported total household debt balances increased by $191 billion in the 2025 Q4, a 1% rise from 2025 Q3, to a new all-time high. 

As the SPY hits new record highs, institutional "smart money" is bypassing expensive puts for $10-wide put vertical spreads costing just $1.69. This pricing anomaly reveals a massive volatility skew, making bearish protection cheaper...