CME Group Stock Price, News & Analysis

CME Group, the world's leading derivatives marketplace, has announced the appointment of Vijay Albuquerque as Chief Risk Officer (CRO) in its Clearing & Post-Trade Services Division. Albuquerque, who brings over 20 years of industry experience, previously served as Head of Counterparty Risk and Portfolio Risk Analytics for Citigroup's Markets and Banking businesses.

Based in New York, Albuquerque will report to Suzanne Sprague, CME Group Chief Operating Officer and Global Head of Clearing. The appointment aims to strengthen the company's risk management services and clearing efficiencies for clients.

CME Group reported record financial results for Q1 2025, with revenue reaching $1.6 billion, up 10% from Q1 2024. The company achieved record average daily volume (ADV) of 29.8 million contracts, showing growth across all asset classes.

Key financial metrics include operating income of $1.1 billion, net income of $956 million, and diluted earnings per share of $2.62. On an adjusted basis, net income was $1.0 billion with diluted earnings per share of $2.80.

Notable performance highlights include:

• Commodities growth of 19%
• Financials increase of 12%
• ADV outside U.S. reached 8.8 million contracts, up 19% year-over-year
• Clearing and transaction fees revenue of $1.3 billion
• Market data revenue of $195 million

The company maintained strong liquidity with $1.6 billion in cash and paid approximately $2.6 billion in dividends during Q1 2025.

S&P Global (SPGI) and CME Group have announced the sale of their joint venture OSTTRA to KKR for $3.1 billion. The enterprise value will be split equally between both companies, as per their 50/50 ownership structure.

OSTTRA, established in 2021, provides post-trade solutions for the global OTC market across interest rates, FX, credit, and equity asset classes. The current management team, led by co-CEOs Guy Rowcliffe and John Stewart, will remain in their positions.

KKR plans to implement a broad-based equity ownership program for OSTTRA's 1,500 employees and will focus on increasing investments in technology and innovation. The transaction is expected to close in the second half of 2025, subject to regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions.

S&P Global and CME Group have announced the sale of OSTTRA to KKR for $3.1 billion. The transaction, expected to close in the second half of 2025, will split proceeds evenly between S&P Global and CME Group from their 50/50 joint venture.

OSTTRA, established in 2021, provides post-trade solutions for the global OTC market across interest rates, FX, credit, and equity asset classes. The current management team, led by co-CEOs Guy Rowcliffe and John Stewart, will remain in their positions.

KKR plans to implement a broad-based equity ownership program for OSTTRA's 1,500 employees and will focus on increasing investments in technology and innovation. The deal aims to enhance OSTTRA's market-leading post-trade solutions, drive innovation, and expand its global footprint.

CME Group achieved record international average daily volume (ADV) of 8.8 million contracts in Q1 2025, marking a 19% increase year-over-year. The growth was driven by strong performance across all asset classes, with notable records in EMEA (6.5M contracts, up 20%), APAC (2M contracts, up 20%), and Canada (196,000 contracts, up 17%).

International quarterly records were set in multiple product categories: Energy and Agricultural products both up 29%, and Foreign Exchange up 14%. Globally, CME Group reported a record quarterly ADV of 29.8 million contracts, representing a 13% year-over-year increase, with record volumes in Interest Rate, Equity Index, Agricultural, Foreign Exchange, and Cryptocurrency products.

CME Group has announced the launch of Spot-Quoted futures on June 30, 2025, pending regulatory review. These innovative contracts will allow investors to trade futures positions in spot-market terms across bitcoin, ether, and major U.S. equity indices including S&P 500, Nasdaq-100, Russell 2000, and Dow Jones Industrial Average.

The new smaller-sized contracts feature extended holding periods of up to five years without rolling requirements, making them particularly attractive for retail investors. The products offer capital-efficient trading opportunities with similar features to perpetual contracts, allowing traders to maintain long-term positions or easily trade in and out without frequent position rolling.

Major industry players including Interactive Brokers, NinjaTrader, and Marex have expressed support for the initiative, highlighting the benefits of spot-level trading combined with futures contract margin advantages.

CME Group has achieved a new all-time quarterly average daily volume (ADV) record of 29.8 million contracts in Q1 2025, marking a 13% year-over-year growth. The company reported the second-highest March ADV of 30.8 million contracts, up 27% from the previous year.

Key achievements include:

• Record quarterly ADV across multiple products: interest rate (15M contracts), equity index (8M contracts), agricultural (2M contracts), foreign exchange (1.1M contracts), and cryptocurrency products
• Record U.S. Treasury complex quarterly ADV of 9.2M contracts
• Henry Hub Natural Gas complex hit quarterly ADV record of 1.1M contracts
• Record international ADV of 8.8M contracts
• Record March equity index ADV of 9.7M contracts

Notable Q1 performance includes SOFR futures ADV increasing 14% to 4.1M contracts, Micro E-mini S&P 500 futures ADV rising 57% to 1.3M contracts, and cryptocurrency ADV reaching 198,000 contracts ($11.3B notional).

Farmer sentiment declined in March as the Purdue University/CME Group Ag Economy Barometer fell 12 points to 140, down from 152. The Index of Future Expectations dropped 15 points to 144, while the Current Conditions Index fell 5 points to 132.

The Farm Capital Investment Index decreased 5 points to 54, while the Farm Financial Performance Index dropped 8 points to 102. The Short-Term Farmland Value Expectations Index remained steady at 118.

Key concerns include declining crop prices, trade uncertainty, and farm policy. Export expectations reached a record low, with 30% of producers anticipating a decline. Trade policy has become a primary concern, with 43% of respondents citing it as the most critical issue, up from 21% before the November 2024 election.

Regarding future support, 65% of farmers believe a program similar to the 2019 Market Facilitation Program is likely, while 74% consider passing a new farm bill this year important.

CME Group and Google Cloud have announced a significant partnership to implement tokenization and wholesale payment solutions using Google Cloud Universal Ledger (GCUL). The collaboration aims to enhance capital market efficiency through distributed ledger technology.

CME Group has completed the initial phase of integration and testing of GCUL, a private and permissioned network designed for traditional financial institutions. The platform will focus on improving collateral, margin, settlement, and fee payments processes as markets move toward 24/7 trading.

The partnership will begin direct testing with market participants later in 2025, with new services planned for launch in 2026. GCUL is specifically designed to simplify account and asset management while enabling financial institutions to develop enhanced client services.