CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) Options Set New Volume And Open Interest Record - More Than 50,500 Contracts Traded; Open Interest Over 234,000 Contracts

The Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) announced that volume in the recently launched options on the CBOE Volatility Index, "VIX" (options ticker symbol VIX), totaled 50,522 contracts yesterday, Monday, April 11, 2006, beating the previous record of 31,481contracts, set on March 29th. Open interest also set a new high mark, with 234,417 open positions at the start of trading on Tuesday. VIX options were launched February 24, 2006.

During the month of March, a total of 181,613 VIX options contracts traded. Open interest stood at 158,994 contracts (107,100 calls and 51,894 puts ) at the end of March.

VIX is the widely disseminated benchmark index commonly referred to as the market's "fear gauge," and for the first time, investors now have the opportunity to trade options on this premier measure of market volatility and investor sentiment. The VIX price is calculated and disseminated by the CBOE throughout the trading day. VIX futures (futures ticker symbol VX) have been available on the all-electronic CBOE Futures Exchange (CFE) since 2004.

CBOE has created a new section of its award-winning website, offering education on VIX trading strategies, historical price data on the VIX going back to 1986, charts, answers to frequently-asked questions, and a free options toolbox, at: http://www.cboe.com/VIXOptions.

CBOE, the world's largest options marketplace and the creator of listed options, is regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). For additional information about the CBOE and its products, visit the CBOE website at: http://www.cboe.com/