Tidal Trust II files to register a Nasdaq-100 fund that would budget 6% for puts
Tidal Trust II filed on September 30, 2026, to register the Nations TailDex-Hedged Nasdaq-100 ETF, which would budget about 6% of net assets a year to buy put protection.
Key takeaways
Tidal Trust II filed on Wednesday, September 30, to register a Nasdaq-100 fund that expects to spend about 6% of its net assets a year buying put options, and to vary that spending with a signal from Nations Indexes. The fund would be called the Nations TailDex-Hedged Nasdaq-100 ETF. The filing says its information is not complete and may be changed, and that the shares cannot be sold until the registration is effective.
The paper is Post-Effective Amendment No. 768, an update that adds this series to a trust already on file. It checks the box to become effective 75 days after filing. No calendar date is filled in, and the trust can still amend the draft. The ticker appears as [QDEX], still in brackets, and the exchange line and the fee table are blank.
How the hedge would work
The objective is long-term capital appreciation. Under normal conditions the fund will invest at least 80% of its net assets, plus any money borrowed to invest, in Nasdaq-100 exposure, through the index's own stocks, an exchange-traded fund that tracks the index, or derivatives such as futures or swaps. No specific fund is named.
The options portfolio is expected to look much like the overlay in the Nations TailDex-Hedged Nasdaq-100 Index, which Nations Indexes, Inc. owns and calculates. That index pairs Nasdaq-100 exposure, with dividends reinvested, and a systematic put overlay. The sub-adviser would still choose the trades. There is no assurance the fund will follow the index at the same time or in the same way, or that the hedge will reduce losses in a decline.
A put is a contract that can pay off if the index falls. The fund generally expects to buy longer-dated puts struck at about 85% of the Nasdaq-100, about 15% below the level on the day of purchase, expiring about a year later. To help pay for them, it expects to sell puts struck at about 95%, about 5% below, expiring about 30 days later, and to sell about two of those shorter puts for each longer put it buys. The ratio can change with the signal. It generally expects to open a new structure each business day, if cash, position limits and suitable contracts allow, so the hedge would be a ladder of overlapping positions with different strikes and expiration dates.
Protection may be limited by the strike prices, the expiration dates and how many puts the fund holds, and the fund may incur substantial losses before the purchased puts provide meaningful protection. Puts it has sold may offset part or all of the gains on the puts it has bought.
The 6% figure is an annual premium budget, a target for the amount allocated to purchasing protection. The shorter puts are expected to partially finance those purchases. The filing says the budget does not limit how far the fund may lag the Nasdaq-100.
Who is behind the fund
Nations Indexes says its Nasdaq-100 30-Day TailDex measures the normalized price of a put three standard deviations out of the money, with 30 days to expiration. That is a deep put, the kind that pays only in a sharp drop. The fund would spend more on protection when the reading says puts are relatively inexpensive, and less when it says they are relatively expensive. When the reading is rising quickly, it generally sells fewer of the shorter puts, so more of the longer puts' protection stays in place. It may also sell pieces of the hedge when the reading is high relative to its history, or after the portfolio has risen.
Nations publishes that reading and sells access to the live figure and its history. This filing would put the signal inside an ETF. Blueprint Fund Management, LLC, in Greensboro, North Carolina, would pick the securities, using research from Nations Indexes, and is named as the fund's sponsor. Tidal Investments LLC, the adviser, has agreed to share a portion of profits, if any, from the advisory fee, and Blueprint has agreed to provide financial support. The named managers are Kenneth Peters at Blueprint, and Qiao Duan and Andy Hicks at Tidal.
Funds you can hold now
Innovator, PGIM and First Trust already list Nasdaq-100 buffer funds that cushion a stated slice of losses and cap the gain for a set period. First Trust's June fund, QJUN, cushions the first 10% of losses in Invesco's fund that tracks the Nasdaq-100, QQQ, and charges 0.9%. Innovator's fund that cushions the first 15% of those losses over about a year, NJAN, charges 0.79%.
Global X lists a fund that holds Nasdaq-100 stocks and buys protective puts on the index, QTR. Those puts sit about 10% below the index and expire in three months. It charges 0.25%.
Invesco also lists a Nasdaq-100 hedged fund, QQHG, that seeks partial downside protection with put spreads and collars. Selling call options can limit the gain if the index rises. It charges 0.45%. NEOS's fund, QQQH, holds Nasdaq-100 stocks and an options collar aimed at monthly income, with a measure of downside protection. It charges 0.68%.
Among these listed hedges, QJUN holds the most
The buffer funds state the cushion and the cap before the period starts. This registration sets a spending target for the puts.
ETFs in this story
Frequently asked questions
What fund did Tidal Trust II file to register?
The Nations TailDex-Hedged Nasdaq-100 ETF, filed on September 30, 2026, with the ticker still shown in brackets as [QDEX].
What does the 6% figure mean?
It is a yearly target for how much of net assets goes to buying put protection, and the filing says it does not limit how far the fund may lag the Nasdaq-100.
How would the TailDex signal change the hedge?
The fund would spend more on protection when the reading says puts are relatively cheap, spend less when it says they are expensive, and sell fewer short-dated puts when the reading is rising fast.
When could the fund start trading?
The filing is set to become effective 75 days after it was filed, but it gives no calendar date, the trust can still amend it, and shares cannot be sold until the registration is effective.
