Making Derivatives More Accessible

As you likely know, in October I began leading global derivatives at Cboe after several years as the Head of our Data and Access Solutions and Digital. I got my start in this industry as an options trader, so derivatives are not new to me, but Cboe’s derivatives business is so large and complex that I knew getting up to speed would be no simple feat. So, I created a 100-day plan that focused on listening and learning, defining our global vision and aligning our strategy. I have been so inspired and motivated by these conversations and am excited to share our vision for Cboe’s global derivatives business with you in the coming year.

There’s so much to come in 2024, but before we get there, I want to reflect on our work in 2023, a year largely focused on growth and accessibility. This year, we celebrated Cboe’s 50th anniversary, which means we also celebrated 50 years since the invention of listed options. The introduction of listed options made a previously exclusive investment strategy accessible to the masses and that commitment to accessibility has stayed at the core of Cboe’s mission to this day.

The continued rise of short-dated options trading is an excellent example of this accessibility in action. The same-day trading strategy is not new, but the increased adoption points to a greater understanding of options strategies and more people participating in the options market. Short-dated options are used to manage exposure to key events, sell premium more frequently, implement different calendar spreads or pursue any number of other varying risk/reward objectives. We are happy to see investors discover new ways to implement options in their portfolios and will continue to support this growth however we can.

The launch of single stock options on Cboe Europe Derivatives is another example of growth and accessibility in options trading. We built Cboe Europe Derivatives to provide a pan-European derivatives marketplace that gives investors access to vibrant equity derivatives market through a single access point, creating efficiencies in trading and clearing. Adding single stock options was the natural next step in creating greater accessibility to derivatives trading in Europe.

Additionally, the creation of options on futures earlier in the year provided investors with expanded risk management tools to more effectively manage their credit portfolios. We know people need more investment vehicles to meet their goals and build a sustainable financial future, and we’re finding innovative ways to do it. In tandem with that launch, we added extended global trading hours for Cboe® iBoxx® iShares® $ High Yield Corporate Bond Index futures (IBHY) and Cboe® iBoxx® iShares® $ Investment Grade Corporate Bond Index futures (IBIG), making the futures tradable 23 hours a day, five days a week. This is in addition to global trading hours for S&P 500 Index options, Cboe Volatility Index options and Mini-SPX Index options. Making U.S index options and futures globally accessible enables investors to trade these products during their local trading hours and react quickly to market moving events—no matter when they happen.

At the start of 2023, we introduced Cboe One Options feed to provide a comprehensive, real-time view of U.S. options pricing through a single market data feed. As the largest U.S. options exchange operator, Cboe is uniquely positioned to bring a high-quality, cost-effective and reliable alternative to existing offerings that will help investors gain a comprehensive view of the U.S. options market. Cboe One Options Feed aims to address the growth of the U.S. options market, which has seen the emergence of a new generation of investors that is increasingly utilizing options-based strategies in their portfolios. Real-time pricing enables investors to make more informed trading decisions, once again making options more accessible.

This year we celebrated another major milestone, 40 years of our partnership with S&P Dow Jones Indices, a group that has been by our side in our journey to make markets more accessible. In September we launched the Cboe S&P 500 Dispersion Index, to measure the expected dispersion in the S&P 500 over the next 30 calendar days. Our Cboe Labs team collaborated with the S&P DJI team to make this index a reality and provide investors with insight into another important market indicator. In 2023 we held our annual Risk Management Conference (RMC) in Austin, Texas. Post-pandemic, our Options Institute reimagined Cboe’s flagship conference to be more educational, interactive and global, and I think they succeeded. RMC 2023 was an excellent learning opportunity and helped me think outside the box about how to approach some of the problems we face in our industry. Accessibility starts with education and I’m so proud of Cboe and the Options institute team for leading the way.

Finally, just this week we published the Cboe MSCI Volatility Indices based on MXEA and MXEF index options, providing a transparent measure of the market’s expectation of 30-day implied volatility implied for the respective MSCI index option classes. We are so excited about this new access to volatility measurement and are looking forward to sharing more about our growing partnership with MSCI soon. For more on our Data Access and Solutions business, check out Adam Inzirillo's year-end note.

In 2024, we’ll continue to prioritize accessibility to our markets as we listen to what you need and find ways to deliver new solutions. I am so excited about the work we’re doing to prepare for next year and I cannot wait to share more. Notably, we’ll have more content from Mandy Xu, our head of market intelligence, focused on long-term trends and analysis. Additionally, be on the lookout for our global derivatives newsletter in Q1 2024 for all the latest on our derivatives business, Cboe Labs and the Options Institute. Finally, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me or a member of our team with thoughts or questions. Until then, I hope you enjoy the rest of 2023 and have a very happy holiday season!

^{There are important risks associated with transacting in any of the Cboe Company products or any digital assets discussed here. Before engaging in any transactions in those products or digital assets, it is important for market participants to carefully review the disclosures and disclaimers contained at: www.cboe.com/us_disclaimers/. These products and digital assets are complex and are suitable only for sophisticated market participants. These products involve the risk of loss, which can be substantial and, depending on the type of product, can exceed the amount of money deposited in establishing the position. Market participants should put at risk only funds that they can afford to lose without affecting their lifestyle.}

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