Cboe Blogs

In July, we acquired pan-European clearinghouse EuroCCP, announced plans for Mini VIX futures, shared market insights and more. Follow us on Twitter for daily updates as we continue defining markets and check back here at the end of August for our next monthly update. Cboe Acquires EuroCCP Cboe started July strong, completing its acquisition of EuroCCP on July 1, and announcing plans to launch Cboe Europe Derivatives in 2021. The acquisition brings together two companies that have long championed[...]

They say ev’ry man needs protection They say ev’ry man must fall Yet I swear I see my reflection Some place so high above this wall Bob Dylan – I Shall Be Released On July 28 of 1794, Maximilien Robespierre was executed by guillotine in Paris during the Reign of Terror. Robespierre was one of the most influential leaders of the Jacobins during the French Revolution. The French were inspired by the American Revolution and other Enlightenment principles. His death arguably brought[...]

The fragmentation of equity markets has caused market centers to evolve in recent years, each with their own distinct characteristics. With 13 live public exchanges (soon to be 16), over 30 Alternative Trading Systems (ATS) — electronic trading venues that match buyers and sellers without displaying a public quote — and multiple other ‘off-exchange’ market centers, equity market participants have a slew of options for optimal execution. The variety of choice makes the decision[...]

Cboe acquired Trade Alert, a real-time alerts and order flow analysis service provider, at the beginning of June. We talked with Trade Alert’s founder, Henry Schwartz, about founding Trade Alert, the need for real-time information and why he’s excited to join Cboe. Henry Schwartz’s career has come full circle. The founder of Trade Alert and now Cboe’s Senior Director, Head of Product Intelligence, found his love for the options industry on Cboe’s trading floor[...]

Cboe’s robust equities risk management tools are designed to help you and your firm manage execution risk with ease. The new functionality offers three interrelated, complementary enhancements that together provide powerful and flexible risk management solutions at varying levels of granularity. MPID Level Risk Controls Members (or clearing firms acting on your behalf) can manage risk at the MPID level through Gross and/or Net Notional Risk Thresholds by receiving notifications when approaching[...]

Back Again So Soon? An early look at players in uniforms is an annual marketing ploy by the National Football League. Recently, marquee quarterback Tom Brady unveiled his new look with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after twenty years of service for the New England Patriots. Source: National Football League The eventual hall of famer drew an equal amount of cheers and jeers from football fans. One fan, a well-known supermodel, shared her supportive reaction to the new uniform on social media by writing[...]

On Wednesday, June 10, Cboe introduced the new Quote Depletion Protection (QDP) enhancement for use with our Midpoint Discretionary Order (MDO). Eugene Davidovich, Head of U.S. Equity Sales and Account Coverage, recently reached out to clients, detailing how QDP may enhance trading outcomes. Learn more about the potential benefits of MDOs and QDP below. MDOs allow participants to post displayed or non-displayed liquidity at the National Best Bid or Offer (NBBO) with discretion to execute up to[...]

FTSE Russell Indexes are reconstituted over a multi-week process in accordance to its benchmark methodology on an annual basis. The reconstitution reflects changes from the preceding year by adding and removing shares of companies to the U.S. Russell Indexes. Approximately 98% of the listed U.S. equity market is represented by the widely followed Russell 3000 Index which includes the subset benchmarks Russell 1000 Index (large-caps) and Russell 2000 Index (small-caps). The 2020 Russell Reconstitution[...]

The Rally We Love to Hate On a recent Microsoft Teams call with my work teammates, I inquired about everyone’s weekend. The ask was not superficial, because I was curious to know if everyone ventured out as much as I had. Until most recently when some states began easing their Stay-at-Home orders, it had become increasingly difficult to recall the days of the week by name. At times it felt as if days bled into weeks and months. That can happen when a global pandemic confines you to your house[...]

The Cboe Global Markets team is looking forward to reopening our trading floor Monday.  This decision was not made lightly. The health and safety of our trading floor community -- which includes Cboe associates and Trading Permit Holders, or TPHs (the firms that conduct trading on our floor) -- guided our decision to temporarily close the floor as well as our plans for its reopening.  Developing and executing our safety-first plans was an incredible companywide lift. Our team has redefined[...]

David Howson, President, Cboe Europe, reached out to European customers at the start of June with an update on the current market environment. Read his letter below. Dear Clients and Members of the Trading Community, I hope everyone continues to stay safe and well during these unprecedented times. I promised in my first update in April that I’d be in touch with you all more often, so this is me making good on that promise! Working remotely has also reinforced the importance of regular communication[...]

In an effort to impede the further spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), decisions were made to shudder “non-essential” workplaces pushing millions into the unemployment system that wreaked havoc on a wide swath of American businesses.  The U.S. stock market’s subsequent sell-off arguably impacted the Federal Reserve Bank’s (FRB) decision to make the following announcement on March 23 stating that it was ”…committed to using its full range of tools[...]

So Many Roads Twenty-five years ago (6/2/1995) the Grateful Dead began what would prove to be their final stand at the Shoreline Amphitheater. The Grateful Dead cultivated an exotic and far flung following. There was nothing standardized about their creative approach and it paid off. In the mid-90s, options were still generally considered to be niche tools used by some eccentric types. Similarly, The Dead were stereotyped as an unusual band without broad appeal, despite a considerable and devoted[...]

At the beginning of February, Cboe acquired options and volatility analytics firm FT Options to further build out our Information Solutions offering. FT Options offers a suite of customizable, automated, integrated applications that provide research and analytics functionality across options, futures and light exotics for proprietary trading firms, hedge funds and separately managed accounts. We talked to the company's founder, Michael Izhaky, about his background, how he built FT Options[...]

As volatility increases in the broader equity markets, market experts have opined that the average cost of trading has also pushed higher. Using a simple trade impact model, this observation can be dissected into two main drivers: the appearance of wider spreads and an increased exposure to higher price volatility. Just by its nature, volatility can be expected to fluctuate over time and also during the course of the trading day. For example, the first hour of the trading day is typically associated[...]