Chicago Trading Company, LLC (CTC) is the Designated Primary Market Maker (DPM) for VT futures. Headquartered in Chicago, with offices in New York and London, CTC is a leading market maker in equity and index derivatives.
"CBOE, which created VIX, the most widely recognized benchmark for market volatility, is the natural home for Volatility and Variance products. Following the successful launch of VIX futures, the first exchange-traded volatility product in the U.S., we are pleased to announce that, in response to customer demand, CFE is now offering Variance Futures," said CBOE Chairman and CEO William J. Brodsky. "Together, VIX and Variance Futures solidify CBOE's reputation as the foremost authority for research, product development and innovation related to market volatility."
"Variance products play an integral role in risk management for many of our customers, and CFE is pleased to provide an exchange-traded variance product that offers the advantages of transparency, standardized terms, and the backing of a triple-A rated clearing house," said CFE Managing Director Patrick Fay.
CFE's Variance futures expand the opportunities now available to trade this new asset class. Variance futures, along with futures on VIX, provide a practical, direct means to trade the volatility of the broad market and to hedge volatility risk of broad-based portfolios.
Variance Futures, symbol VT, are traded electronically on CFE, via CBOEdirect, and will be cleared at the triple-A rated Options Clearing Corporation (OCC). VT trades on the March expiration cycle, with initial contract months of September and December 2004, and March and June 2005. VT contracts will be cash settled.
Trading hours for both VIX and Variance futures are 8:30 a.m. to 3:15 p.m. CST (Chicago time). For contract specifications and more information, please visit the CBOE website at http://www.cboe.com/CFE.
The newly formed CBOE Futures Exchange is a wholly owned subsidiary of Chicago Board Options Exchange, Incorporated, offering an all-electronic, open access market model, with traders providing liquidity and making markets. The newest futures exchange in the world, the CBOE Futures Exchange is regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
CBOE, regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), is the creator of listed options, and the world's largest options marketplace. For additional information about the CBOE and its products, access the CBOE website at http://www.cboe.com/.
