Press

Eurex US, the fully-electronic U.S. futures and options exchange, today announced a package of incentive programs to further enhance trading activity in U.S. Treasury futures. A new revenue sharing initiative focusing on high frequency smaller size trading for proprietary accounts begins July 12. This program allows firms to share in 40 percent of Eurex US' 2005 revenues and 25 percent of 2006 revenues, up to $20 million each year. Two separate qualifying periods in 2004, the first beginning July 12, will be used to allocate 2005 revenues. Each qualifying period will count towards 20 percent of 2005 revenues up to $10 million, with a minimum of $5 million per period.

Another component of the program is a fee holiday for U.S. Treasury futures for all market participants until the end of the year. Additionally, with Eurex US recently obtaining regulatory authorizations in eleven European countries, most recently in the United Kingdom, it is introducing a European trading hours market making program. The European market making program will incentivize participants to provide liquidity during European trading hours from 9:00am to 2:20pm CEST (2:00 am to 7:20 am CST). Currently, market makers on Eurex US are active between 7:20am and 2:00pm CST. Eurex US is also enhancing all of the market maker programs to include stipends for complying market makers.

"Customers have been very supportive of Eurex US and with the receipt of regulatory approval in the UK, the exchange can now connect the European and US customer bases in U.S. Treasury futures," said Satish Nandapurkar, CEO of Eurex US. "This incentive plan reinforces our liquidity and will help to enhance the diversity of our order book."

Eurex US opened its market for trading on February 8, 2004 and currently lists futures and options on 2-, 5- and 10-year Treasury notes and on 30-year Treasury bonds. Pending approval of international regulatory authorities, Eurex US will expand its offering to include trading in futures and options on Euro-denominated interest rate and index products. These products will include the Bund future, the world's most heavily traded futures contract, Bobl and Schatz futures, as well as products on the leading European indices DAX and DJ EURO STOXX 50.