A Primer on Everlasting Options

Options are financial instruments that give investors the right (but not obligation) to buy or sell an underlying asset at a fixed price on some set date in the future. In addition to leverage for retail investors, options are used extensively by market makers to earn income, improve returns, and manage risk. 

The inherent discontinuity of options markets (discrete strikes and expiration dates) presents certain challenges to holders of options contracts. Rolling of positions at expiration introduces additional costs and risks, largely due to wide spreads commonly charged by market makers. Everlasting options are a new financial primitive (originally proposed by Dave White and Sam Bankman-Fried here) that provide non-expiring options exposure without the costs or risks associated with rolling positions.