CBOE Floor

Does anybody know roughly how much volume is still traded via open outcry at CBOE?

Also does anybody by chance have any connections on the CBOE floor (brokers, locals, clerks, etc)?

Thanks

YT

 

I remember them saying they execute more than 94% of their orders electronically, yet 40% of their volume is still done in the pits.

Keep in mind orders executed on the floor may count as electronic trades as they are matched within the CBOEdirect program. The only way to count the open outcry trades are when they are held because of being a large block order and not reported immediately on the tape as a block trade or because of a complex spread order. The butterflies I put on every month (in high-vol stocks) go directly to the floor as I always send an RFQ to a CBOE market maker. They are extremely competent people and great to deal with. I met a few on the floor awhile back and their job seems great especially with the tools at their disposal.

Floor is still very active, including the S&P 500 options pit. It is pretty much only half-hybrid and still does a ton of volume.

 

Thanks

Thats what I was looking for.

 

Yeah, the CBOE is still a great place.

They are a little lax on their visitation policies, unlike the CME and CBOT, so I'm sure if you contact someone over there you may be able to take a tour on the floor.

 

Actually the reason I ask is because I will be graduating high school a semester early next year around February and will be coming down to Chicago to try to find work on the trading floors. I also plan on attending DePaul University.

 

you can also apply for work at the exchange itself. a lot of the exchanges will pay for your education as well. at least some of it. make sure you look into employment with the exchange itself as well.

call the exchange and ask where you can get a list of the members. get resumes to the members as well. high school only might be a bit tougher to sell though.

the exchanges aren't that far from each other. people hang out at the same bars and go to lunch at the same places. just get yourself a job in the vicinity and be willing to work hard. you'll find yourself on the right path and rubbing elbows with the right people before you know it.

you've got the right idea. by the time you finish @ de paul you'll be right where you need to be. good plan buddy. good luck to you.

 

The staffing at all the exchanges all over the country has been cut back significantly, as the result of the demutualization of the exchanges and the mergers that followed that. This of course also cut a lot of the jobs on the floor out. The electronic market place has also cut significantly into the number of people who work on the floors in both trading and support capacity. Some places like the AMEX and the PSE are weezing out their last breaths in the equity options arena. They’re victims of short sightedness back in the late 1990’s and early 2000’s. Even the CBOE has lost significant % of volume to places like the ISE and PHLX, since they’re electronic markets.


Good luck to you but the exchanges as we have known them are changing rapidly and might not be the best place to look.

 

youngtrader - You've been posting pit related threads for the past year, how times do you need to hear they're either dying or already dead? Are you that fixated on working in the pits someday?