MWCBs for Cboe U.S. Options Exchanges

Read frequently asked questions about market-wide circuit breakers for Cboe U.S. Options exchanges.

1. How will Cboe Options Exchanges halt and re-open options for a Level 1 or Level 2 MWCB?

   Cboe Options Exchanges will halt all options trading for all classes immediately upon receipt of a Level 1 or Level 2 trigger message from the SIPs. During the entirety of the halt period, new orders and cancels will be accepted for all symbols. Orders and quotes will enter a queued state and wait for re-openings to occur. Orders placed prior to the halt may be cancelled or persisted depending on the user's cancel on halt session-level settings.

2. What are the re-opening requirements for each options series that must be met for each series to resume trading?

   Cboe Options Exchanges have defined the re-opening requirements in the Cboe Titanium U.S. Options Opening Process. In general, Cboe will wait for the below requirements to be met. Once met, options series will open using the price-forming auction process described in the specification linked above.

   1. Opening trigger (e.g., a halt resumption message from the SIP for multi-list securities or time-based triggers for proprietary index options)
   2. Maximum Composite Width Check to ensure options do not open when the Composite Market is too wide
   3. Forced opening if the Maximum Composite Width Check is not satisfied but other criteria are met

3. How will Cboe Options Exchanges handle a Level 3 MWCB trigger?

   Cboe Options Exchanges will halt all options trading upon receipt of a Level 3 MWCB trigger. Options trading will cease for the remainder of the trading day.

   Cboe Options Exchange expects to re-open for GTH trading at the normally scheduled time for the next business date. For example, if a Level 3 MWCB is triggered on Tuesday, then Cboe expects to open GTH trading on Cboe Options Exchange at 8:15 p.m. ET on Tuesday evening with trading occurring for the Wednesday business date.

4. How does Cboe anticipate options expiration processing to be handled in the event of a MWCB Level 3 trigger?

   Expiration processing is the responsibility of the OCC for all options listed on Cboe Options Exchanges. Cboe expects the OCC to follow the guidelines set forth in the OCC Unscheduled Market Closing Guide.

   Equity and ETF/ETN Options are expected to use the last sale price during regular trading hours on the most recent trading day for expiration processing.

   Index Options settlement prices for cash settled index options shall be determined by an OCC panel that includes representatives of the applicable listing exchange(s). It is anticipated that the SOQ settlement price from the next trading day following the Level 3 MWCB event will typically be used for expiration processing for p.m.-settled index products.