Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE)'s push to demutualise and press ahead with an IPO has made many in the industry bullish about the exchange's future.
Members, analysts and industry professionals said they believed that CBOE was an exchange with strong momentum behind it. It has clawed its way back after losing market share to International Securities Exchange (ISE) with the ongoing rollout of its hybrid trading system, a move that has included remote market makers and flexible access to the exchange. That, among other technology initiatives, has boosted volume and seat prices dramatically over the past year the $1.3m level.
The exchange raised more eyebrows late last month with the announcement that it planned to launch a stock exchange in 2007, a move that would not only put it on par with other US options exchanges such as ISE, but also may...