BZX Exchange Pushes for Commodity Trust Share Trading Options
Published Date: 3/19/2025
Notice
Summary
Cboe BZX Exchange wants to let people trade options on Commodity-Based Trust Shares, which are like special funds tied to commodities. This change opens up new ways for investors to buy and sell these options starting soon, making the market more exciting and flexible. If approved, it could impact traders and fund managers by giving them fresh tools to manage their money.
Analyzed Economic Effects
5 provisions identified: 5 benefits, 0 costs, 0 mixed.
Allow Options on Commodity ETFs
Cboe BZX filed on March 5, 2025 to amend Rule 19.3 so the Exchange may list and trade options on Commodity-Based Trust Shares (commodity ETFs) that are approved to list on a primary equities market. If approved, options on qualifying commodity ETFs could begin trading without a separate SEC approval, subject to the Exchange's initial listing criteria.
Listed Options Give Hedging Tools
If you hold commodity ETFs, options listed on Commodity-Based Trust Shares give you a market-traded way to hedge price risk instead of using over-the-counter (OTC) contracts. The Exchange says listed options increase transparency and price discovery compared with OTC trading.
Faster Market Access for Issuers
The proposed change would let the Exchange list options on qualifying Commodity-Based Trust Shares without separate SEC approval, which the Exchange says reduces time and costs for issuers and market participants. This could lower the burden on funds that want options listed once the ETF meets the Exchange's initial listing criteria.
Product Specs: Settlement, Expirations, Strikes
Options on Commodity-Based Trust Shares will be physically settled and American-style. The Exchange may list weekly, monthly, quarterly, and long-term options (12 to 39 months), with strike intervals of $1 or greater for strikes $200 or less and $5 or greater for strikes over $200, and minimum increments of $0.05 for prices below $3.00 and $0.10 for prices at or above $3.00 (with penny-interval exceptions in certain programs).
Limits, Margin, and Surveillance Apply
Options on Commodity-Based Trust Shares will be subject to existing position and exercise limits (up to 250,000 contracts for the largest funds, with lower limits of 200,000, 75,000, 50,000 or 25,000 for smaller funds) and to the Exchange's margin rules and surveillance programs, including Intermarket Surveillance Group and FINRA arrangements. The Exchange says it has systems capacity and will apply its surveillance rules to these options.
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