CME Group to Lauch New E-mini Russell 2000 Weekly Options

CME Group​, the world's leading and most diverse derivatives marketplace, announced yesterday that it will launch E-mini Russell 2000 Monday and Wednesday Weekly options on October 4. These new options contracts will complement the existing Friday Weekly, End-of-Month and Quarterly options on Russell 2000 futures.

"As the demand for more short-dated options continues to grow, we are expanding our product suite to allow our clients to hedge or trade with enhanced flexibility around major market-moving events," said Tim McCourt, CME Group Global Head of Equity Index and Alternative Investment Products. "Weekly options on our deep, liquid underlying futures contracts also provide market participants with a more cost-effective and efficient toolset to manage risk in the small-cap segment."

"With around $10.6 trillion in AUM benchmarked against the Russell US indexes, FTSE Russell, in collaboration with CME Group, are committed to continuing to develop the underlying risk management markets in the Russell indexes," said Ricardo Manrique, FTSE Russell's Head of Derivatives Strategy. "The E-mini Russell 2000 options provide a highly efficient and cost-effective way to gain market exposure to U.S. small caps, and this latest expansion of the Russell index derivatives complex on CME reflects both the strength of the FTSE Russell index franchise and the ability of CME Group to meet client needs with innovative solutions."

Similar to their counterparts, these new weekly options will be European-style, with a 4 p.m. ET expiry on Mondays and Wednesdays. These contracts are E-mini sized option contracts with a $50 multiplier.