Gamma Exposure Setup: Finding Alignment Between SPY and VIXE-mini S&P 500 FuturesCME_MINI_DL:ES1!GexviewwIn this educational idea, we want to share one of our best trading setups, which appears from time to time. We use gamma exposure as the framework for our analysis, and we want to keep it as simple as possible. Before we begin, here are some important notes on how to build our chart templates: We don’t open SPY directly; instead, we prefer to open ES1! as the main symbol and plot the SPY in a new pane below. With this approach, we can view the full gamma exposure of the previous day before the spot market opens, as we have 23 hours per day on our charts. Then, we add the GexView indicator, which helps us monitor how gamma exposure has developed over the last five days. We analyze it like the classic Volume Profile indicator, looking to find major and repeatable levels. Finally, we add a momentum indicator. We prefer the twice-awarded MACD-V indicator by Alex Spiroglou. From a bird’s-eye view, we can see that on SPY , one of the major gamma levels during these days is 690. Some levels are added, while others disappear completely, but the 690 gamma level remains in place. Especially on February 23, it represents the largest gamma level and acts as a magnet for price. After the market opens during RTH, the ticker touches exactly the 690 price level and immediately rejects it (1). We can add to our analysis the negative divergence between the MACD-V and the ES futures contract (2). As ES1! completes a higher high, the MACD-V creates a lower high, triggering a negative divergence. Are these two signals enough to take action and enter a trade? No. We need confirmation from an asset moving in the “opposite” direction, like VIX . Look at the image. The gamma level that separates positive from negative gamma is at 20. On February 23, it represents the largest gamma level of the day. During Extended Trading Hours, VIX seems to find support at 20 (1). However, after the market opens (RTH), VIX makes a false breakdown (bear trap) at 20 and immediately rises rapidly (2). Note that this false breakdown happens at the same time SPY hits resistance. It’s the perfect alignment between SPY and VIX . In addition, we observe the same MACD-V behavior, but from the opposite side. It now produces a positive divergence for the VX1! futures contract (3). That’s it — simple, clean, and effective. We trade setups like this using NQ1! or ES1! , and now we patiently wait for the next opportunity to appear.