Dennis Chookaszian, 60, who has had a long and distinguished career in the insurance industry, primarily with CNA Financial Corporation ("CNA") where he rose to the positions of Chairman and Chief Executive Officer during his 27-year career with the company. He also had served as Chief Financial Officer of CNA.
Mr. Chookaszian retired from CNA in 2001. From 1999 until 2001, Mr. Chookaszian also served as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of mPower, Inc., a financial service provider focused on the online management of 401(k) plans. Mr. Chookaszian serves as a director of several companies and foundations including Marshall & Swift, L.P., Sapient Corporation, Career Education Corporation, Insweb Corp. and the Board of Trustees of Northwestern University. Mr. Chookaszian is a certified public accountant.
Elizabeth Harrington, 61, who served as a partner with PricewaterhouseCoopers, LLP, in its Global Strategy practice from 1995 until her retirement. She specialized in the consumer and industrial products sectors and the Asian market. Ms. Harrington previously served in senior executive positions responsible for global business expansion and marketing for Pillsbury and Quaker Oats. She also served as a partner at A.T. Kearney and vice president of the J. Walter Thompson Company. She began her career at Proctor & Gamble. Ms. Harrington has 20 years of experience working in Asian markets and is an advisor to the government of the People's Republic of China on modernizing several major industries, foreign investment and joint ventures.
Alex J. Pollock, 61, who has served since 1991 as President and Chief Executive Officer of the Federal Home Loan Bank of Chicago, an $85 billion wholesale bank. Mr. Pollock pioneered the innovative Mortgage Partnership Finance program, which mortgage lenders can use as an alternative to selling their fixed rate home loans to the secondary market and now has over $87 billion in assets. He was previously President and CEO of Community Federal Savings in St. Louis, Mo.
The other nominees for equity director are currently on the Board:
- Leo Melamed, 71, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Melamed & Associates
- Martin J. Gepsman, 51, independent floor broker and trader
- Myron S. Scholes, 62, 1997 Nobel Laureate - Economics; Frank E. Buck Professor of FInance, Emeritus, Graduate School of Business, Stanford University; Chairman, Oak Hill Platinum Partners
- William R. Shepard, 57, President, Shepard International, Inc.
In addition to the equity directors, two directors will be elected by the holders of Class B-1 common stock and one director will be elected by the holders of Class B-2 common stock. A nominating committee comprised of holders of Class B-2 common stock has selected the following four nominees for the two Class B-1 director positions:
- Timothy R. Brennan, 62, Vice President, Refco, L.L.C.
- Bruce F. Johnson, 61, independent trader
- Howard J. Siegel, 47, independent trader
- Scott Slutsky, 47, independent trader
A nominating committee comprised of holders of Class B-2 common stock has selected the following two nominees for the Class B-2 director position:
- Patrick B. Lynch, 38, independent floor trader
- Ronald A. Pankau, 47, independent floor trader
All directors are to be elected for two-year terms at CME's annual meeting, which will be held on Wednesday, April 21.
Last November, CME announced that following the 2004 Annual Meeting of Shareholders, it will create a Market Regulation Oversight Committee, a new Board level committee comprised solely of independent, non-industry directors. They will conduct an annual review and report to the Board concerning: the independence of CME's regulatory functions from business operations; independence of CME regulatory and management personnel from improper influence by industry directors regarding regulatory matters; CME's compliance with its statutory, self-regulatory responsibilities; appropriate funding and resources to ensure effective performance of those self-regulatory responsibilities; and, appropriate compensation for exchange employees involved in regulatory activities.
Chicago Mercantile Exchange Holdings Inc. became the first publicly traded U.S. financial exchange on Dec. 6, 2002. The company was added to the Russell 1000® Index on July 1, 2003. It is the parent company of Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. (www.cme.com), the largest futures exchange in the United States. As an international marketplace, CME brings together buyers and sellers on its trading floors and GLOBEX® electronic trading platform. CME offers futures and options on futures primarily in four product areas: interest rates, stock indexes, foreign exchange and commodities. The CME Clearing House, the largest futures clearing facility in the world, moved about $1.4 billion per day in settlement payments in 2003 and managed $39.5 billion in collateral deposits as of Jan. 31, 2004.
