Cboe News: S&P 500 Options License Extended to 2051

Item	Detail
Parties	Cboe Exchange, Inc. and S&P Opco, LLC (S&P Dow Jones Indices)
Effective date	September 28, 2026
Term	Through December 31, 2051
Replaces	Restated License Agreement dated November 1, 1994
New fee terms	Per-contract royalties from January 1, 2027
2025 SPX options volume	970.6 million contracts; 3.9 million average daily

Cboe Global Markets has extended its exclusive license to list S&P 500 index options for 25 years, a Cboe news item that locks in Cboe’s rights to its flagship index options for decades. The agreement was signed September 28, announced September 29, and runs through December 31, 2051.

What the agreement covers

The master license agreement and two orders supersede and expand the 1994 license between Cboe and S&P Dow Jones Indices. Cboe keeps the exclusive right to use the S&P 500 index and certain marks to create, list, trade, clear and settle standardized options on its U.S. markets, and to market them. The parties also grant each other cross-licenses to derive, publish and disseminate certain volatility indices, BuyWrite indices and variance indicators. That covers the VIX volatility franchise, including the options and futures tied to it. In exchange for updated fees, calculated per contract, Cboe will pay royalties on new terms starting in 2027.

Cboe and S&P DJI said they may also collaborate beyond traditional index derivatives, with tokenized options contracts named as an example.

Financial impact

In a separate release, Cboe said 2026 royalty terms are unchanged. It estimates the 2027 terms will have a “de minimis” effect on 2027 net revenue growth, when set against organic volume growth, pricing and execution, and said future royalty adjustments should be smaller than the 2027 reset. More specific 2027 organic net revenue guidance is due in February with fourth-quarter results. The releases’ cautionary statements still list loss of the right to exclusively list and trade certain index options and futures as a risk factor, which is the exposure this extension addresses.

Volume context

SPX options set a record annual volume of 970.6 million contracts in 2025, with average daily volume of 3.9 million contracts, up 25% from the prior year and the fourth consecutive record year. Craig Donohue, Cboe’s chief executive, said the extension supports growth in the SPX and VIX franchises, and Catherine Clay, chief executive of S&P DJI, called the S&P 500 the most widely tracked index in the world.

What to watch

Because the new fees are calculated per contract, the February guidance will show how Cboe expects the 2027 reset to play out. Parts of the license exhibits were redacted in the filing.