CHICAGO, Aug. 13, 2020 – CME Group and Nasdaq today announced plans for a new futures contract on the Nasdaq-100 Volatility Index (VOLQ). CME Group will launch its new Nasdaq-100 Volatility Index futures contracts on Oct. 5, 2020, pending regulatory review. As the world’s leading and most diverse derivatives marketplace, CME Group operates the largest equity index futures complex in the world. Nasdaq is a leading global provider of trading, clearing, exchange technology, listing, information and public company services.
“We’re pleased to further build on our longstanding, successful relationship with Nasdaq to offer these new futures contracts on the innovative Nasdaq-100 Volatility Index,” said Tim McCourt, CME Group Global Head of Equity Index and Alternative Investment Products. “VOLQ futures respond directly to growing demand for tools to hedge portfolio volatility exposure or trade at-the-money volatility on a leading global benchmark equity index, the Nasdaq-100. Additionally, they will complement our deeply liquid Nasdaq futures and options product line, including the benchmark E-mini and Micro E-mini Nasdaq-100 contracts.”
“The Nasdaq-100 index tracks the world’s most innovative companies and has shown incredible strength and resilience through its outstanding performance,” said Lauren Dillard, Executive Vice President and Head of Nasdaq’s Global Information Services. “The VOLQ index enables investors to track Nasdaq-100 volatility, and CME Group’s launch of VOLQ futures is a great step in bringing more innovative products around market volatility to investors.”
Introduced by Nasdaq in early 2019, the VOLQ Index measures 30-day implied volatility of the Nasdaq-100 Index (NDX), which helps market participants better understand and manage portfolio volatility. This real-time volatility index is expressed by the prices of certain listed NDX options to obtain precise, at-the-money options prices, which are the most commonly used options by market participants. This innovative approach allows volatility traders to use an implied volatility index that focuses on the options increasingly used by strategists, hedgers and traders.
For more information on the Nasdaq-100 Volatility Index visit nasdaq.com/volq.
The new futures contract will be cash-settled based on the VOLQ Index, with one contract equal to $1,000 multiplied by the index. VOLQ futures will be listed by and subject to the rules of CME. For more information on VOLQ futures, please visit cmegroup.com/vol-q.
About CME Group
As the world’s leading and most diverse derivatives marketplace, CME Group (www.cmegroup.com) enables clients to trade futures, options, cash and OTC markets, optimize portfolios, and analyze data – empowering market participants worldwide to efficiently manage risk and capture opportunities. CME Group exchanges offer the widest range of global benchmark products across all major asset classes based on interest rates, equity indexes, foreign exchange, energy, agricultural products and metals. The company offers futures and options on futures trading through the CME Globex® platform, fixed income trading via BrokerTec and foreign exchange trading on the EBS platform. In addition, it operates one of the world’s leading central counterparty clearing providers, CME Clearing. With a range of pre- and post-trade products and services underpinning the entire lifecycle of a trade, CME Group also offers optimization and reconciliation services through TriOptima, and trade processing services through Traiana.
CME Group, the Globe logo, CME, Chicago Mercantile Exchange, Globex and E-mini are trademarks of Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. CBOT and Chicago Board of Trade are trademarks of Board of Trade of the City of Chicago, Inc. NYMEX, New York Mercantile Exchange and ClearPort are trademarks of New York Mercantile Exchange, Inc. COMEX is a trademark of Commodity Exchange, Inc. BrokerTec, EBS, TriOptima, and Traiana are trademarks of BrokerTec Europe LTD, EBS Group LTD, TriOptima AB, and Traiana, Inc., respectively. Dow Jones, Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&P 500 and S&P are service and/or trademarks of Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC, Standard & Poor’s Financial Services LLC and S&P/Dow Jones Indices LLC, as the case may be, and have been licensed for use by Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
About Nasdaq
Nasdaq (Nasdaq: NDAQ) is a global technology company serving the capital markets and other industries. Our diverse offering of data, analytics, software and services enables clients to optimize and execute their business vision with confidence. To learn more about the company, technology solutions and career opportunities, visit us on LinkedIn, on Twitter @Nasdaq, or at www.nasdaq.com.
