Cboe Blogs

Quantitative analyst by day, Olympic-qualifying runner by night (or non-working hours, that is). Brett recently won the J.P. Morgan Challenge in Chicago, finishing the 5K in 17 minutes and 26 seconds.  We chatted with Brett about his running career and the upcoming Olympic trials. Running has become a way of life for Brett Lustgarten, who started racing with his middle school cross country and track teams. He stuck with the sport through high school and at the University of Illinois, where[...]

Brian Schell was recently recognized by the Security Traders Association Women in Finance for his commitment to gender diversity and inclusivity with the Ken Heath Award. Brian joined his fellow award recipients to discuss the importance of gender diversity in the workplace. As Cboe’s Executive Sponsor of Diversity Initiatives, Brian works to support women in finance as he strives to continue Ken’s legacy. Growing up in a family of accountants, Brian Schell, Cboe’s CFO, imagined[...]

A new white paper finds SPXW Index that sells SPXW puts generated average annual gross premiums of 37%, with less volatility compared to stocks and bonds. Do you still wonder if all put-selling strategies have tremendous left-tail drawdown risk? University of Illinois at Chicago Professor Oleg Bondarenko has an answer for you in his new white paper, “Historical Performance of Put-Writing Strategies,” which he presented at the 35th annual Cboe Risk Management Conference. See what he has[...]

VIX® Futures Term Structure Inverts in May Source: Cboe LiveVol Worries about a trade war with China sent the equity markets into a downturn in early May and the VIX Index saw a jump of almost 7 points in two trading days. The VIX futures term structure inverted on May 7, reflecting concern over near-term market risks. VOLATILITY NEWS MarketWatch: Why Stock-market Investors Fear Another 'VIX-driven Air Pocket' as Volatility Spikes  Bloomberg: What to Expect from U.S. Stocks[...]

Steeper Term Structure; Growing Short Interest The VIX® futures term structure steepened in recent months attracting higher levels of short interest in long VIX futures strategies as represented by the iPath S&P 500 VIX Short Term Futures ETN (VXXB). VOLATILITY NEWS Bloomberg: It's a 'Golden Age' for Short-Volatility Trades Barron's: Stock Market Volatility is Quiet, for Now The Wall Street Journal: Traders Wager on Calm as Volatility Evaporates Bloomberg: Hedge[...]

Friday marks Cboe’s 46th anniversary and we’re celebrating all week with some of our favorite memories and moments. Follow the fun with #Cboe46 on your preferred social platform, or check out our Instagram page for stories and opportunities to vote on your favorite Cboe button throughout the decades. Cboe Buttons Each year, we commemorate our beginnings by creating an anniversary button. Take a look at how they’ve changed throughout the years and vote for your favorite on[...]

Cboe RMC Insights: 2019 U.S. Interviews Did you miss this year’s Cboe Risk Management Conference in Carlsbad, California? Watch our video series to hear insights from our panelists of top traders, strategists, and researchers on the latest volatility trading models, hedging techniques, and equity derivatives use cases. VOLATILITY NEWS Bloomberg: The Liquidity ‘Illusion’ Has These Funds Making Plans for a Stock Doomsday Bloomberg: JPMorgan Sees `Violent' Markets on[...]

Did you miss this year’s Cboe Risk Management Conference in Carlsbad, California? Never fear, several of our panelists have provided their insights on what’s happening in the markets in the video series below. Go ahead, challenge yourself to think differently about portfolio management with the latest hedging techniques, equity derivatives use cases and volatility trading models.  To stay in the know, RMC you must go! The next Cboe RMC is September 9 through 11 in Munich, Germany.[...]

Hedge Funds Building Short VIX Positions While Retail Goes Long Sources: www.cftc.gov and Bloomberg Net leveraged money in Cboe Volatility Index (VIX) futures—assets predominantly managed by hedge funds—began rebuilding short positions as equity markets recovered from late December losses. In contrast, leveraged long VIX exchange-traded products—assets predominantly owned by retail investors—started to trend higher in 2019. VOLATILITY NEWS The Wall Street Journal:[...]

Did you read our summary of Day One? Don’t miss it! Day Two of the 35th annual Cboe Risk Management Conference was jam-packed with new information, engaging panels, networking opportunities and lots of finger food! Cboe Chairman, President and CEO Ed Tilly kicked off the day with an update on Cboe’s business and advocacy efforts. He also thanked Cboe VP of Research Bill Speth for his 24 years of “wisdom, guidance and friendship.” Bill retires this month after a legendary[...]

The 35th annual Cboe RMC kicked off in Carlsbad, California, yesterday with one keynote and two panels. After attendees checked in, they were encouraged to pick up some Cboe swag, including phone accessories, baseball caps and Cboe RMC vests (yes, we know they run big). Our team also provided copies of new white papers at the Cboe booth. After a morning in the sunshine, conference attendees shuffled into the Grand Ballroom at the Park Hyatt Aviara for David Blitzer’s keynote speech, “Less[...]

We’re celebrating Women’s History Month throughout March. Check back regularly as we add new profiles, quotes and more, or follow along on your favorite social media channel with #CboeWomen. Her Story: In Focus Click the box to read about some of the women (and men!) that make Cboe great.  Bea Ringold                                      Roma Colwell-Steinke [...]

Jill’s global career has helped her through difficult decisions and formed her into the leader she is today. Born and raised in Iowa, after graduating undergrad, Jill moved to Kansas City to begin her career working for an accounting firm. Ten years later, in search of a change-of-pace, she found herself at Bats, prior to Cboe’s acquisition.   “I initially joined the firm to lead the financial reporting effort, as the company was preparing for its initial public offering,”[...]

As SVP, Global Head of Listings, Laura oversees the global listings business and ETF.com, developing strategy, working with issuers to list their products and overseeing market quality incentive programs. Prior to joining Cboe, Laura spent 20 years in leadership roles at the NYSE. What was it like to work on the NYSE floor? Walking onto the floor each morning was a tremendous honor and a defining moment in my career. Surviving on the trading floor was invigorating, challenging and inspiring. It[...]

Though she’s spent her entire working life at Cboe, Eileen has never shied away from new experiences, pursuing leadership roles in technology, a space historically occupied by men.  Eileen began her Cboe career in 1985 as an intern heading into her final year of college. Among other assignments, she was tasked with printing and organizing instructional materials for some of the very first Options Institute classes.   “It was a completely hands-on experience,” she says.[...]