Cboe Charges Up for Trading Ports and Orders
Published Date: 2/12/2026
Notice
Summary
Cboe BZX Exchange is rolling out new fees for special connection ports called Unitized Logical Ports and for average daily orders and quotes on its equity options platform. Traders and firms using these services will see these changes starting right away, so they should plan for some new costs. This update helps the Exchange cover tech and service expenses while keeping things fair for everyone.
Analyzed Economic Effects
5 provisions identified: 2 benefits, 3 costs, 0 mixed.
New Unitized Port Monthly Fees
If your firm connects to Cboe BZX Options using the new Unitized Logical Ports, you will pay monthly fees: BOE Unitized Ports $350 per port/month, Bulk Unitized Ports $550 per port/month, and Purge Unitized Ports $400 per port/month. You can also buy port "sets" with tiered monthly prices (for example, BOE sets start at $2,500/month for the 1st and 2nd set and increase up to $3,500/month for the 15th–30th set), and monthly fees are charged in full and are not prorated.
New Average Daily Order/Quote Charges
Cboe BZX will charge fees if your firm's average daily orders (ADO) exceed 2,000,000 or average daily quotes (ADQ) exceed 250,000,000 in a calendar month. Above those free thresholds, ADO increments (per 1,000 orders) are charged on tiered rates up to $2.50 per 1,000 at the highest tier, and ADQ increments (per 20,000 quotes) are charged on tiered rates up to $0.20 per 20,000 at the highest tier.
Market Makers’ Required Quoting Port
Exchange Options Market Makers are required to quote via a BOE Bulk Unitized Logical Port (the Bulk Unitized Port type), while other Members may choose whether to use Unitized Logical Ports. This requirement means Market Makers will generally need to obtain the Bulk Unitized Port type and incur its fees.
Higher Port Caps — Up to 30 per Matching Unit
The Exchange raised the maximum number of Unitized Logical Ports a Member may hold to 30 Unitized Logical Ports per Member, per Matching Unit, per port type (up from a prior cap of 20). This allows firms to obtain more ports for a given matching engine if they need them.
Unitized Ports Optional for Most Members
Except for the Market Maker quoting requirement, purchase and use of Unitized Logical Ports is voluntary and Members may continue to use existing convenience logical ports (FIX or BOEv3) at current rates (for example, current standard convenience port fees remain in place). Firms can therefore choose whether the new unitized connections are worth the extra cost.
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