Certificates: “Almost exclusively optimists when it comes to tech stocks”

Alphabet, Nvidia, Micron Technology – U.S. tech stocks dominate the trading volume rankings in certificate trading. But oil is still a hot topic as well.

May 21, 2026. FRANKFURT (Frankfurt Stock Exchange). The enthusiasm for AI is also reflected in the trading of certificates, to a greater extent than the Middle East conflict and the energy price crisis. At ICF Bank, the focus is very much on tech stocks, as Markus Königer reports. “Investors are betting on everything related to AI.” Simon Görich of Baader Bank agrees: “Tech stocks in general and AI in particular are of particular interest to investors,” he explains.

According to Julius Weiß of HSBC, the quarterly earnings season has also sparked interest in individual stocks. “Oil is still in focus, but less so than in March or April,” he adds. Overall, he sees high trading volumes. “The last few weeks have been among the most active of the year.” Top underlying assets at HSBC were the Nasdaq, the DAX, and gold, as well as the individual stocks Micron Technology, Rheinmetall, AMD, data center operator IREN, and Nvidia. The most-traded underlying assets at ICF Bank over the past four weeks were the DAX, the Nasdaq, oil, Rheinmetall, and Alphabet.

Mostly tech stocks—or Rheinmetall

“It’s striking that the top 20 best-selling products consist almost exclusively of bullish certificates on tech stocks, often on Alphabet, Micron, TSMC, AMD, and Nvidia,” notes Königer. Examples: Call warrants on Micron (DE000HM44ZE2), TSMC (DE000HT8UMR9), and Alphabet (DE000HT9R5U8). At HSBC, among the open-end knock-outs, a call on Nvidia (DE000HM5HM23) is particularly high-volume, with leverage of around 7 and a strike price/barrier currently at $193.91.

There is also a lot of activity at ICF in certificates on Rheinmetall—with almost exclusively bullish positions. Yet the stock has been weakening for several months and has fallen from over 1,900 euros in January to 1,240 euros. Apparently, many consider this decline unjustified and are buying factor-long warrants with a leverage of 6 (DE000PJ6RHM2) or open-end knock-out calls (DE000PK8YKD4). In addition to Rheinmetall, other German stocks are also playing a role, such as Siemens Energy, SAP, and Infineon, as Königer adds.