Cboe Considers Relaunching Binary Options Amid $17B Rival Trading Surge

Cboe Global Markets is engaging with retail brokers to revive regulated binary options, aiming to challenge crypto-based prediction markets like Polymarket.

Summary

Cboe Global Markets is in discussions to reintroduce binary options contracts for retail investors, potentially under SEC or CFTC oversight. The regulated offering would position Cboe against crypto prediction platforms such as Polymarket. Competitors Kalshi and Polymarket achieved $17 billion in January trading volume, underscoring demand for event-driven wagering. Binary options, which provide fixed payouts based on yes-or-no outcomes, were previously offered by Cboe in 2008 before being discontinued.

Terms & Concepts
  • Binary Options: A type of financial contract where the payoff is either a fixed amount or nothing, based on a yes-or-no outcome.
  • SEC (U.S. securities regulator): The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, a federal agency overseeing securities markets and investor protection.
  • CFTC (U.S. derivatives regulator): The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission, regulating derivatives markets including futures and options.