Volatility Index Black Swan Catcher W/TINA (Only meant for bear market)
Today’s Change (Mar 17, 2026)
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About
Bear-market, volatility-driven rotation using RSI and price signals to load into leveraged ETFs (UVXY, SPXL/SSO/QLD/TQQQ/SOXL/TECL) and hedges (PSQ, XLP, BIL). Includes a TINA defensive layer and a guard for non-bear conditions.
- Concept in plain language:
This is a bear-market focused, volatility-aware rotation among a set of ETF-based bets. It looks for volatility spikes and momentum clues to decide when to load into ultra-leveraged equity bets and volatility bets, and when to hedge with defensive assets. It also uses a bear-market sub-theme called TINA (There Is No Alternative) to favor hedges like PSQ (short QQQ) and cash-like BIL to manage risk. The plan is not a long-term buy-and-hold; it’s a tactical, signal-driven approach intended for sharp, uncertain markets.
- Core pieces you’ll see:
1) SPY Pop Bot, QQQ Pop Bot, SMH Pop Bot: Each one tries to capture big, fast moves in major areas (the broad market, tech-heavy QQQ, and semiconductors) using a mix of leveraged ETFs (e.g., SPXL, SSO, QLD, TQQQ, SOXL, TECL) plus volatility exposure (UVXY).
2) RSI-based triggers: The system uses a momentum gauge called RSI (short for Relative Strength Index) over recent days to decide if a market is overheated or undercooked. For example, it might look at RSI on SPXL or QQQ and compare it to thresholds like 80 or 30 to decide whether to buy or cut.
3) Price vs moving average checks: Some rules require the current price to be above a moving-average reference, helping avoid trading during weak rallies.
4) The TINA (bear-market) lane: When signals point to a high-risk scenario, the strategy switches to hedges like PSQ (which profits when QQQ falls) and defensive staples like XLP or cash-like BIL. It may also build a corridor of multi-asset hedges to reduce drawdowns.
5) DONT REPLACE BIL: The cash-like asset BIL is kept as a core ballast in the mix, so there’s always a safe component in play.
- How it decides allocation:
a) If a “pop bot” condition is met (e.g., strong momentum signals in SPY/QQQ/SMH with RSI checks and price vs moving average), it allocates to leveraged ETFs to try to ride a big move.
b) If a TINA/bear signal appears, it tilts toward PSQ, defensive sectors like XLP, and short-duration Treasuries (BIL) to damp risk.
c) The model uses weights across paths (e.g., 100/100 for each select bot block, and a smaller, guard weight for the Not a black Swan Event path), with a tendency to emphasize bear-appropriate hedges during volatile periods.
- Why this might be dangerous:
- It uses highly leveraged ETFs, which can magnify both gains and losses and are particularly fragile during rapid reversals.
- It is designed for bear markets; in strong bull markets it may underperform standard buy-and-hold or less aggressive strategies.
- Signals (RSI, moving-average checks) can produce abrupt switches between very different market bets, which may incur trading costs and execution risk.
- The strategy relies on model interpretation of signals; real-world results depend on precise rule timing, slippage, and the behavior of complex products like UVXY or TECL/TQQQ.
- In short: it’s a tactical, volatility-aware bear-market engine that tries to catch big downside moves and rebounds by rotating among ultra-levered stock bets and volatility exposures, while keeping a defensive ballast (PSQ, XLP, BIL) ready to hedge when risk spikes.
Out-of-sample edge: aims for ~31% annualized vs ~21% for the S&P, with lower drawdown (~16% vs ~18.8%), solid Calmar (~1.91), and positive alpha. A volatility-driven bear-rotation that seeks big upside moves while hedging risk.
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Invest in this strategy
OOS Start Date
Nov 30, 2022
Trading Setting
Threshold 10%
Type
Stocks
Category
Bear-market strategy, volatility-driven, leverage rotation, etf-based, tactical cash/bond hedges
Tickers in this symphonyThis symphony trades 13 assets in total
Ticker
Type
BIL
State Street SPDR Bloomberg 1-3 Month T-Bill ETF
Stocks
PSQ
ProShares Short QQQ
Stocks
QLD
ProShares Ultra QQQ
Stocks
QQQ
Invesco QQQ Trust, Series 1
Stocks
SOXL
Direxion Daily Semiconductor Bull 3X ETF
Stocks
SPXL
Direxion Daily S&P 500 Bull 3x ETF
Stocks
SSO
ProShares Ultra S&P500
Stocks
TECL
Direxion Daily Technology Bull 3x ETF
Stocks
TQQQ
ProShares UltraPro QQQ
Stocks
USD
ProShares Ultra Semiconductors
Stocks