just now
The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has approved Cboe's proposal to list binary options tied to key performance indicators (KPIs) reported by selected companies.
Cboe submitted the proposed rule change in July 2026. Once launched, the contracts will let investors trade on reported business metrics rather than on how a company's share price reacts to them. Robinhood plans to be the first retail broker to offer the contracts.
Trading has not yet begun. Before it can start, Cboe Clear U.S. needs to obtain temporary registration to clear the contracts, and that application remains pending.
The contracts will settle according to whether a company reports a particular KPI above or below a predefined threshold. The approved list contains more than 100 metrics across 23 companies, including Apple's iPhone revenue, Nvidia's data-centre revenue, Tesla's Model 3/Y production and Robinhood's funded-customer count.
The products will be cash-settled, European-style options, meaning they can be exercised only at expiration. A successful contract pays a fixed $1, while an unsuccessful one expires without a payout. Settlement will use the metric in the company's relevant SEC filing rather than an earlier earnings press release. Cboe can decide which contracts to list and set several thresholds around the most recently reported value.
The contracts take a different regulatory route from event contracts offered through platforms such as Kalshi, which operate on exchanges regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. Cboe's KPI contracts will be securities listed on an SEC-regulated options exchange.
Cboe and Robinhood had targeted an October launch, although an exact date has not been disclosed. Cboe plans to waive its exchange fees on the contracts through 2026, subject to regulatory review, and Robinhood has said it will not charge fees through the end of the year.
Earlier this year, Cboe launched Cboe Predicts, binary options on the Mini-S&P 500, listed under the symbols XSPBW and XSPBX.
Found this interesting? Become a member of LiquidityFinder and get daily industry news direct to your inbox, join here.
