What does this skill do, and when should you use it?
This skill analyzes volatility for equity, index, and foreign-exchange options. It starts with the volatility surface, discovers valid option templates, prices selected options, and then compares implied volatility with realized volatility from historical prices. Its assessment covers term structure, skew, smile curvature, Greeks, and the implied-minus-realized volatility premium. It is best suited to derivatives analysts with access to LSEG MCP data.
It calls equity_vol_surface or fx_vol_surface according to the asset type, extracting ATM term structure, 25-delta risk reversals, and butterflies; calls option_template_list to discover available option types, expiries, and strikes; calls option_value to obtain premium, delta, gamma, vega, theta, rho, and implied volatility; calls tscc_historical_pricing_summaries or qa_historical_equity_price for historical prices; computes 20-, 60-, and 90-day close-to-close realized volatility; compares those figures with matching implied-volatility tenors; and produces a volatility assessment with strategy recommendations.
- An equity-derivatives analyst tests whether an index or stock's implied volatility is rich or cheap relative to recent realized volatility.
- An FX options trader reviews the delta-based surface, risk reversals, and butterflies for pairs such as EURUSD.
- An options pricer obtains premiums and full Greeks for selected calls and puts after identifying relevant surface strikes.
- A volatility-trading team compares 20-, 60-, and 90-day realized volatility with matching ATM implied-volatility tenors.
- A research analyst summarizes the volatility regime, term structure, skew, curvature, and possible trading strategies.
How do you install this skill?
- Before use, confirm LSEG MCP subscription, credential scope, mainland-China network reachability, and the actual tool names, parameters, and returned fields.
- The skill does not specify handling for missing data, invalid RICs, tenor mismatches, or tool failures; unverified strategy recommendations should not be used directly for trading or risk decisions.
- A qualified professional should review implied/realized-volatility tenor matching, annualization, surface quotation conventions, and Greeks.
- Network access
- MCP Server
LSEG MCP tools
In Cowork, open Settings → Plugins → Add plugin, paste https://github.com/anthropics/financial-services, and select the relevant LSEG partner plugin or skill collection from the marketplace. The README does not provide a standalone installation command for this skill. Its source file is plugins/partner-built/lseg/skills/option-vol-analysis/SKILL.md.
tmp="$(mktemp -d)"
git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/anthropics/financial-services.git "$tmp"
mkdir -p ~/.claude/skills
cp -R "$tmp/plugins/partner-built/lseg/skills/option-vol-analysis" ~/.claude/skills/
rm -rf "$tmp"Generated from the source repository and skill path; it copies only this skill's folder. If the author's install steps above differ, follow those first. To scope it to one project, replace ~/.claude/skills with that project's .claude/skills.
How do you use this skill?
Once installed, send your agent any of these to trigger it:
- Analyze the SPX 1M, 3M, and 6M implied-volatility surfaces, compare them with 20-, 60-, and 90-day realized volatility, and assess whether volatility is rich.
After installing the collection and configuring access to the LSEG MCP tools, use a targeted prompt such as: “Analyze the SPX 1M, 3M, and 6M implied-volatility surfaces, compare them with 20-, 60-, and 90-day realized volatility, and assess whether volatility is rich.”
What are this skill's strengths and limitations?
- Provides a defined sequence from surface analysis to template discovery, option pricing, and realized-volatility comparison.
- Supports equity, index, and FX volatility surfaces and includes a broad set of option Greeks.
- Connects surface shape, term structure, skew, curvature, and the implied-minus-realized premium in one assessment.
- Requires access to the listed LSEG MCP tools; the README notes that MCP access may require a provider subscription or API key.
- The SKILL.md supplies workflow guidance but no test suite, sample outputs, or detailed error-handling behavior.
- Results depend on the availability and quality of returned market data; the source does not specify coverage limits.
How does this skill compare with similar options?
Side by side with related skills; every score comes from the same FSRS standard.
| Skill | FS score | Stars | Last updated | License |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Option Volatility Analyst this page ✓ Anthropic · Official | 42 · Not recommended | ★ 40k | 1mo ago | Apache-2.0 |
| Probability Analysis — Event Probability Analyst | 60 · Recommended | ★ 76 | 26d ago | MIT |
| Alpha Insights BizAdvisor | 59 · Recommended | ★ 68 | 3mo ago | MIT |
| Claude Persona: AI Panel Research & Concept Testing | 57 · Use with care | ★ 57 | 3mo ago | MIT |
| Exa Deep Research Orchestrator | 57 · Use with care | ★ 5.1k | 18d ago | MIT |
How did FollowSkills review this skill?
The skill names its required MCP tools and data types, with no malware, credential theft, or destructive behavior evident; however, it does not define least privilege, user confirmation, sensitive-data handling, data-flow disclosure, rollback, or safe boundaries for trading recommendations, so points are deducted.
The tool chain and analytical sequence are internally coherent, with specified historical windows and output tables; however, there is no tool-availability validation, parameter-failure handling, abnormal-input handling, or diagnosable error feedback. Static review caps this below 10.
The scope clearly covers equity/index and FX volatility surfaces, option pricing, and implied-versus-realized volatility analysis; however, non-fit cases, exclusion triggers, and Chinese-language support are absent, and mainland-China reachability of the LSEG MCP dependency is not established, so points are deducted.
The documentation is readable and includes tool descriptions, workflow steps, and output templates; the repository supplies Apache-2.0 licensing and general installation guidance. The skill itself lacks dedicated dependency installation notes, versioning, changelog, maintenance ownership, limitation disclosures, input examples, and troubleshooting, so points are deducted.
The workflow addresses volatility surfaces, Greeks, historical realized volatility, and strategy assessment, and the templates are potentially usable directly; however, no representative outputs are verified, and correctness of data mapping, tenor matching, and strategy recommendations is not demonstrated, so the static-review cap is applied conservatively.
Repository-level plugin validation and the pinned revision provide limited traceability, and the skill specifies its tools and steps; however, there is no skill-specific test suite, real execution evidence, or independent corroboration, leaving evidence coverage thin.
Open a dimension to read why it scored that way
Evidence confidence：Low — Mostly static review, author material or a limited demo; useful for discovery, not high-risk decisions.
See the full review method →