Expanding Market Access: Why Cboe Plans to Launch Near 24x5 U.S. Equities Trading this Year

The industry moves closer to making around-the-clock trading for U.S. equities markets a reality each day, and I am proud that Cboe is at the forefront of this evolution. We have officially submitted a proposal to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to launch near 24x5 U.S. Equities trading on Cboe EDGX Equities Exchange (EDGX) in December 2026, subject to regulatory review and industry development.

As we shared last February, Cboe is ready to deliver around-the-clock U.S. equities trading, and our filing with the SEC brings us one step closer. We plan to make all listed National Market System (NMS) stocks available for trading on EDGX from Sunday at 9:00 p.m. ET to Friday at 8:00 p.m. ET, with a daily, one-hour operational pause from 8:00 to 9:00 p.m. ET Monday through Thursday.

Demand for extended trading hours for U.S. equities has been consistently growing, and Cboe’s U.S. equities Early Trading Hours volumes continue to back this claim. Cboe currently offers pre-market trading from 4:00 – 7:00 a.m. ET on EDGX and Cboe BZX Equities Exchange (BZX) and Average Daily Volume (ADV) during that session has grown 590% from February 2022 to February 2026. EDGX is now the second largest early hours trading exchange.

Cboe has also had great success in operating overnight markets for multiple proprietary products including Cboe Volatility Index Futures and Options (VIX Futures and VIX Options), Cboe S&P 500 Index Options (SPX Options) and Global FX markets. Trading in Cboe’s proprietary index options from 8:15 p.m. to 9:25 a.m. ET hit record levels in 2026 as investors were able to adjust their trading strategies and reposition as pre-market news broke. Our Global Trading Hours (GTH) session in our derivatives market, as well as our FX markets, have created the roadmap for Cboe to bring a similar model to U.S. equities. Cboe has years of experience operating overnight markets, with a proven playbook for ensuring the same reliable experience customers are familiar with during our regular trading hours.

We are well prepared to implement this framework to our U.S. equities markets, but operational readiness is only one piece of the puzzle. At Cboe, we’re committed to delivering customer-driven solutions, so we take great lengths to ensure we are delivering what the market needs. In this case, our why could not be clearer.

Enhanced market accessibility has always been a driving force for Cboe, and in our increasingly global world, extended trading hours are a key component of making our markets more accessible.

We are excited about the opportunities this brings our global investor base – especially those in Asia Pacific – who will be able to react to current events and trade U.S. equities in real-time. Foreign holdings of U.S. securities continue to increase year-over-year, so it is only right that those traders gain more access to our markets and market data to make more informed trading decisions. Investors everywhere will gain enhanced opportunities to react to major news as it breaks and international investors will be able to trade at a more reasonable time for them, as time zones continue to be a major roadblock to enter U.S. markets.

Access to reliable real-time market data and leading-edge technology is an essential piece of this effort. Cboe Data Vantage^sm continues to expand U.S. equities data to global market participants backed by Cboe Titanium^sm – our globally consistent technology that powers our markets. For example, the Cboe One U.S. Equities Feed offers consolidated, real-time market data from Cboe’s four U.S. equities exchanges. The Cboe Data Vantage team continues to expand the availability of our U.S. equities data offerings to further support investors trading around the clock. Cboe is committed to ensuring U.S. equities traders have the data they need to make informed decisions, with real-time, top of book and historical data accessible through a variety of platforms. Our ability to provide robust U.S. equities market data will only grow stronger with an overnight market welcoming more investors into the mix.

Expanding trading hours is a transformative step to ensuring Cboe’s U.S. equities markets are globally accessible. More access to U.S. equities markets allows global investors to better manage risk and adjust their positions during overnight hours. Investors from Europe to Asia will be more equipped to participate in the U.S. equities markets through Cboe’s comprehensive trading solutions and real-time market data. We are thrilled at this next step towards welcoming more investors into U.S. equities markets and providing them with the data and tools needed to trade around-the-clock.