EN.12 Short Box Spread -- Placing a Real Trade in Interactive Brokers 

I don't have a direct answer to you since I don't write options except the short box spread on SPX. However, I did ask IB about their Stock Yield Enhancement Program where my stocks can be borrowed by them for others to short. I asked whether it affects the dividend I am entitled if the stock was borrowed. Here is their answer: Stock Yield Enhancement Program shares that are lent out are generally recalled from the borrower before ex-date in order to capture the dividend and avoid payments in lieu (PIL) of dividends. Based on their above answer, my guess is that they won't do something that affects your dividend or the tax treatment of your dividend because they lend your securities to others.

@@clefinvestments Thank you for your response! Also, your videos are extremely helpful.

It is very small and should not be a concern. For example, for a short Box spread of $210k, the Initial Margin is $153, and the Maintenance Margin is $139.

@@clefinvestments Hi Wenhua, I tried to place an order as you kindly suggested, and it shows both the initial margin and maintenance margin is 100K for a 5000-6000 Box Jun 18, 2025. Could you please share some advice? Do we need to have a large cash account for placing this kind of order? Thanks!

@@ExceptionNoWay this is likely because you didn't enable portfolio margining in your account.

@@clefinvestments Thanks a lot for your quick reply and comments! Yeah, my current account on IBKR is not Portfolio Margin Account. And I also tried to submit a short box spread on 0DTE SPX 5535-5545 options today, to test if I can get a risk-free credit income. Unfortunately, the order was being immediately cancelled, without even being submitted into the SMART route for a price improvement. From your videos, I learnt that the volume is very important for the Box spreads. But for the 0DTE options, the volumes are very high. It is very likely that because the account is not a portfolio margin account. I will update after I could confirm this. Thanks a lot for your kind sharing on your valuable videos and knowledge! Very helpful! I greatly appreciate that!