Cboe Global Markets, Inc. (Cboe: CBOE | Nasdaq: CBOE), announced that it plans to list Wednesday-expiring weekly options on the Cboe Mini-SPX Index (XSP), beginning January 30, 2018.
Cboes new XSP Wednesday-expiring WeeklysSM offer the features of S&P 500 Index (SPX) Weeklys options, but at 1/10th the contract size. Essentially, XSP Weeklys options allow investors to efficiently gain broad-market exposure in a single trade on a weekly basis – providing more frequent opportunities for investors to implement targeted hedging, buying, selling or spreading strategies at a fraction of the cost.
The initial expirations for the new XSP Wednesday-expiring Weeklys are planned for February 7, 2018, February 14, 2018, and February 21, 2018. Going forward, new expirations will typically be listed on a Tuesday at least one week prior to expiration.
We are pleased to further expand our suite of products based on the S&P 500 Index by building off our successful SPX Weeklys complex and Mini-SPX options with the introduction of XSP Wednesday-expiring Weeklys, said Andy Lowenthal, Senior Vice President, Head of Global Derivatives at Cboe. By combining the accessibility of Mini-SPX options with the greater precision of Weeklys, investors will have even more opportunities and flexibility when trading the S&P 500.
Contracts with weekly expirations allow investors to implement more targeted buying, selling, spreading or hedging strategies. In addition, options with weekly expirations can help investors take advantage of breaking news or known economic events, such as corporate earnings, monthly U.S. economic reports and Federal Reserve announcements.
SPX Weeklys are one of Cboes fastest-growing products, with average daily volume (ADV) in 2017 up 35 percent over 2016, setting a 12th consecutive annual record. Further, XSP options have grown from an ADV of 320 contracts in 2012 to 14,313 contracts in 2017.
The XSP Wednesday-expiring Weeklys options may expire on any Wednesday of the month, other than a Wednesday that coincides with an End-of-Month (EOM) expiration date. If the Wednesday of the week in which the options expire coincides with an Exchange holiday, the expiration date will be on the preceding Tuesday. The expiration date for each series is also the last trading day. On their last trading day, expiring XSP options will trade until 3:00 p.m. CT. Non-expiring XSP options will trade until 3:15 p.m. CT.
XSP Wednesday-expiring Weeklys are PM-settled, aligning with single-stock options and ETF options, which provides investors with the ability to trade in and out of positions on settlement day. The options are also cash-settled, have European-style exercise and have a $100 multiplier.
