A Game-Changer for Retail Traders: How MenthorQ is Shaping the Post-2020 Market

A remarkable series of developments created the ideal environment for retail trading growth in 2020. First, zero-commission platforms emerged, initiated by Charles Schwab in late 2019. Then, mobile trading apps like Robinhood appeared, giving traders the capability to engage with markets from anywhere.

As those two tech developments opened doors, several others encouraged retail traders to go through them. The COVID-19 pandemic triggered lockdowns that left people at home with lots of time for trading. It also prompted stimulus checks, which provided money for trading. And the uptick in trading-related discussions on social media accelerated the pace of new retail traders entering the market.

While these developments created a fresh fervor for retail trading, key elements were still missing. Traders had what they needed to get in but didn’t have what they needed to win.

“When retail traders began rushing into the market around 2020, there was a lack of sophisticated research tools available to them,” says Fabio Ruggeri, CEO and Founder of MenthorQ. “Advanced charting, real-time data, and analytics often remained behind paywalls, with pricing often at institutional levels. Traders could get basic information online, but in-depth training on topics like risk management or complex option strategies — which is key for any trader — was difficult to find. Because few retail traders understood the importance of structured position sizing, stop-loss strategies, or probability-based approaches to protect capital, risk management in that portion of the market went completely out the window.”

Ruggeri is a fintech expert with over 16 years of experience utilizing finance, investment strategies, and alternative data to drive enterprise business development. His work with two major fintech multinationals and a startup in the alternative data space allowed him to develop a deep understanding of the modern financial industry.

Through MenthorQ, Ruggeri has given retail traders streamlined access to the complex financial data they need to trade with the expertise of a professional. The company’s goal is democratizing institutional-level trading through the use of sophisticated AI-driven quantitative models.

Creating the perfect trading tool for the post-2020 market

Ruggeri and his team at MenthorQ knew retail traders needed more data to improve their understanding and performance. But they also knew the data needed to be presented the right way.

“One of the key technical challenges we have had to overcome in building the MenthorQ platform was making advanced quantitative data and tools accessible to retail traders without overwhelming them,” Ruggeri explains. “We set our sights on providing simplified access to institutional-grade data — things like gamma exposures, options flow, and quantitative models. For many retail traders, that kind of data is completely new. Presenting it in a clean and digestible way, without dumbing it down, was a real challenge.”

MenthorQ also needed to engineer a platform that could handle vast amounts of data without bogging down. It had to optimize for both speed and flexibility to empower quant strategies and ensure its models and data pipeline were reliable and scalable to make those strategies available to a growing universe of retail traders.

Ultimately, MenthorQ’s insights, expertise, and efforts resulted in a platform that simplifies the market while providing retail traders with tools they can use to make actionable decisions.

Empowering traders in a new landscape

As the retail trading community has grown, the trading environment has changed. One key shift is added market liquidity, which has laid the groundwork for new types of price swings and “meme stock” short squeezes.

“The activity of retail traders, which is often coordinated by information shared via social media, has challenged traditional market narratives,” Ruggeri explains. “It has forced everyone, including institutional investors, to look at the market with fresh eyes.”

MenthorQ gives traders what they need to track with the new narratives. It provides them access to a comprehensive range of trading models that unlock access to advanced market insights and strategies.

For example, MenthorQ’s Q-Score trading model helps traders evaluate assets based on momentum, seasonality, volatility, and options activity. It empowers enhanced decision-making — where to set call options and put options, for example — that refines trading strategies.

Additionally, MenthorQ’s Gamma Levels trading models track gamma exposure on crypto, futures options, indices, and stocks. The models empower traders by allowing them to quickly spot market reaction zones driven by option flows.

“MenthorQ has reinvented technical analysis by providing gamma levels driven by options positioning,” Ruggeri says. “While technical analysis is backward looking as it tries to use past data to predict future movements, the MenthorQ gamma levels are forward-looking as they leverage the complexity of options data to provide data-driven insights.”

MenthorQ takes the guesswork out of retail trading. It gives traders the data-driven insights they need to build an effective strategy and experience the success once reserved for institutional traders.

“We believe that once retail traders start understanding and applying the tools we’ve incorporated into MenthorQ, they gain an edge,” Ruggeri says. “Learning how to adapt a strategy based on market regimes, factor rotation, or risk signals helps traders stay ahead of the market and develop long-term resilience.”