Good commentary about SIG and the evolution of the options market. http://alphacution.com/download-the...il&utm_term=0_98541b806d-18378db97a-204597581
During my MM years, I enjoyed self-employment, even if it meant making less money because I wanted control over my hours and spare time. There were only two firms I would have worked for if they would have asked, SLK, and SIG. SLK would have been my first choice then SIG.
Hull or O'Conner would have been most folks first choice here in Chicago. SIG had a funny reputation as "me too" MM.
John R. Boehm The Old Main Post Office at 433 W. Van Buren St. The parent company of the Chicago Board Options Exchange is closing in on a deal to move its Loop headquarters to the redeveloped Old Main Post Office, adding to a leasing hot streak at the historic structure as it transforms into a modern office building. Cboe Global Markets is negotiating a deal for about 175,000 square feet in the mammoth building at 433 W. Van Buren St., according to sources familiar with the discussions. If the deal is finalized, the options exchange operator would represent one of the largest leases yet at the long-vacant 2.5 million-square-foot building, which New York developer 601W is reintroducing to the market after an estimated $900 million renovation. The negotiations raise questions about the future of the Cboe trading floor in the exchange operator's headquarters at 400 S. LaSalle St., a 350,000-square-foot building the company developed in the early 1980s. It still owns the property today, where it occupies 300,000 square feet, according to recent regulatory filings. It's unclear what the company will do with the property as it leaves its headquarters behind. Said a Cboe spokesman, "As we’ve stated previously, Cboe is evaluating its current real estate needs and we are looking at various options in the area as part of our ongoing plan to meet the needs of current and future workforce, as well as our customers and trading floor community." A 601W representative didn't immediately provide comments. Cboe disclosed this year it was exploring a potential headquarters relocation. Its chief financial officer told analysts during a February conference call that Cboe was sizing up a "possible relocation and leasing of our Chicago corporate office headquarters" and that it might be able to provide more clarity on its plans during the second half of the year. A spokeswoman at the time said the company was evaluating the "location and functionality of our trading pits." Cboe has reduced its Chicago workforce since merging with electronic exchange Bats in 2017. Luring Cboe to the cavernous property straddling Ida B. Wells Parkway would continue the leasing momentum at the Post Office. It's been validated as a burgeoning corporate destination, with several tenants including Walgreens Boots Alliance, Ferrara Candy and the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning set to move thousands of jobs to the landmark. 601W is also closing in on a deal with ride-hailing company Uber for as much as 450,000 square feet and leases with IT giant Cisco Systems for 130,000 square feet and Federal Home Loan Bank of Chicago for 125,000 square feet. With its doors on track to open to its first tenants this fall, the developer has now signed or is finalizing deals for more than half of the building's office space. The Post Office's resurgence is anchoring a broader renaissance in the southwest corner of the Loop. Companies over the past nine months have signed leases for more than 1 million square feet in mostly vacant and planned buildings near the South Branch of the Chicago River. Cboe's stock price has been trending up in recent months. Its shares began trading this morning at about $111, up 16 percent from the beginning of the year. Cboe reported operating income of $146.5 million during the first quarter, down 13 percent from the same period in 2018.
I drive under that horrendous looking building everyday. They should have turned it into a giant indoor casino resort, complete with a topless rooftop pool. Trading floors still exist??! Chicago needs to get with the times.
Box actually open a "floor" last year in the CBOT - it's kind of large office space. CBOE now has a coffee bar on 4 off the floor. Was still operating two pits, but it has been a while. Probably the biggest floors left in Chicago are the firm bullpens of traders. Uncertain what is still running in CBOT Bond building.
I never thought much of Hull traders. O'Connor was funny as well. They had an enormous talent spread between their upstairs and floor traders, although unlike a CRT, they hired floor traders to eventually move upstairs, and most of their floor traders went on to do extremely well. The two companies I never saw a bad trader - SIG and Cooper Neff (BNP). The former more docile, the latter were consistently the biggest assholes on the floor, but both put their employees through brutal training programs.