CHICAGO, Dec. 10, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- CBOE Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: CBOE) announced today that it has entered into a licensing agreement with MSCI Inc., a leading provider of investment decision support tools worldwide, to offer options trading on several MSCI indexes. Under the agreement, in the U.S., options on the MSCI indexes will be solely listed for trading on the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE).

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The six indexes included in the agreement are the MSCI EAFE Index, MSCI Emerging Markets Index, MSCI ACWI Index, MSCI USA Index, MSCI World Index and the MSCI ACWI ex-USA Index.

CBOE plans to offer options trading in the first quarter of 2015, pending regulatory approval, on two of MSCI's best-known indexes: the MSCI EAFE Index and the MSCI Emerging Markets Index. CBOE plans to list options on the four other MSCI Indexes later in 2015. Options on MSCI Emerging Markets and EAFE indexes could become valuable tools for investors looking to efficiently hedge their non-U.S. equity portfolio exposures or to diversify their portfolios. Trading in options on other MSCI indexes offer new opportunities to hedge a variety of different exposures, as well.

"CBOE is pleased to be the only U.S. exchange for trading options on MSCI Indexes," said CBOE Holdings CEO Edward T. Tilly. "This agreement aligns two of the world's leaders in indexing. MSCI's extensive experience in creating global benchmark indexes and CBOE's leadership and innovation in developing and trading successful index options will make for a dynamic partnership. We look forward to working with MSCI to bring new index options products to a growing worldwide user base."

"We are delighted to have licensed the CBOE, the global leader in index options, to list options on six of our most popular global equity indexes," said Baer Pettit, Managing Director and Head of MSCI's index business. "We've seen record trading volumes in 2014 for futures based on the MSCI indexes."

In total, MSCI's Indexes are estimated to have over $9.5 trillion benchmarked to them on a worldwide basis.


    --  The MSCI EAFE Index is recognized as the pre-eminent benchmark in the
        United States to measure international equity performance. It comprises
        the MSCI country indexes that represent developed markets outside of
        North America: Europe, Australasia and the Far East.  The MSCI EAFE
        Index is calculated in U.S. dollars on a real-time basis, and values are
        disseminated every 60 seconds during market trading hours.
    --  The MSCI Emerging Markets Index captures large- and mid-cap
        representation across 23 emerging markets countries. With over 800
        constituents, the index covers approximately 85% of the
        free-float-adjusted market capitalization in each country.
    --  The MSCI ACWI Index (All Country World Index) is a free-float-adjusted,
        market- capitalization-weighted index designed to measure equity-market
        performance throughout the world. The MSCI ACWI is comprised of stocks
        from both developed and emerging markets. The index consists of 46
        country indexes comprising 23 developed and 23 emerging market country
        indexes.
    --  The MSCI USA Index is a free-float-adjusted market-capitalization index
        that is designed to measure large- and mid-cap U.S. equity market
        performance. The MSCI USA Index is a member of the MSCI Global Equity
        Indices and represents the U.S. equity portion of the global benchmark
        MSCI ACWI Index.
    --  The MSCI World Index captures large- and mid-cap representation across
        23 developed markets and 23 emerging market country indexes.  With more
        than 1,500 constituents, the index covers approximately 85 percent of
        the free-float-adjusted market capitalization in each country.
    --  The MSCI ACWI ex-USA Index captures large-, mid- and small-cap
        representation across 22 of 23 developed markets countries (excluding
        the U.S.) and 23 emerging markets countries. The index covers
        approximately 99 percent of the global equity opportunity set outside
        the U.S.

For more information on MSCI Index options, see www.cboe.com/MSCI.

Since creating the first cash-settled index option in 1983, CBOE has been a pioneer and leader in index options trading. Today, CBOE lists nearly 20 broad-based index options and is the exclusive home for options on the S&P 500 Index (SPX), the S&P 100 Index (OEX) and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJX); the semi-exclusive home for options on the Russell 2000 Index (RUT); and lists options on the NASDAQ-100 Index (NDX). CBOE exclusively offers trading in options on its CBOE Volatility Index (VIX Index) and a broad array of other volatility-related indexes. For additional information on CBOE index options, visit: http://www.cboe.com/micro/spx-stock-index-options.aspx.

About CBOE Holdings:
CBOE Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: CBOE) is the holding company for Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), the CBOE Futures Exchange (CFE) and other subsidiaries. CBOE, the largest U.S. options exchange and creator of listed options, continues to set the bar for options and volatility trading through product innovation, trading technology and investor education. CBOE Holdings offers equity, index and ETP options, including proprietary products, such as S&P 500 options (SPX), the most active U.S. index option, and options and futures on the CBOE Volatility Index (the VIX Index). Other products engineered by CBOE include equity options, security index options, Weeklys options, LEAPS options, FLEX options, and benchmark products such as the CBOE S&P 500 BuyWrite Index (BXM). CBOE Holdings is home to the world-renowned Options Institute and www.cboe.com, the go-to place for options and volatility trading resources.

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CBOE(®), Chicago Board Options Exchange(®), Execute Success(®), OEX(®), CBOE Volatility Index(®), CFE(®), FLEX(®), LEAPS(®) and VIX(®) are registered trademarks, and BuyWrite, BXM(SM), Weeklys(SM), CBOE Futures Exchange(SM), SPX(SM) and The Options Institute(SM) are service marks of Chicago Board Options Exchange, Incorporated (CBOE). Standard & Poor's(®), S&P(®), S&P 100(®) and S&P 500(®) are registered trademarks of Standard & Poor's Financial Services, LLC and have been licensed for use by CBOE and CFE. Nasdaq(®) and Nasdaq-100(®) are registered trademarks of The Nasdaq Stock Market, Inc. and have been licensed for use by CBOE and CFE. Russell(®) and Russell 2000(® )are registered trademarks of Russell Investments and have been licensed for use by CBOE and CFE. All other trademarks and service marks are the property of their respective owners.

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SOURCE CBOE Holdings, Inc.