MEMX, the member’s exchange, has received approval from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to launch a platform for trading listed options.
MEMX Options, the US options exchange, is expected to launch early next year and will use a price time-model, leveraging the strengths of MEMX’s data-centric exchange architecture and infrastructure.
Since launching in 2020, MEMX has grown to over 4% market share. The exchange said its expansion into options will allow it to expand this further and cater to a wider range of investors.
“The creation of MEMX Options was driven by a desire to extend the vision of a member-aligned market to the options community. Over the past few months, we have had productive discussions with a wide range of participants to understand where we can add value to the options exchange landscape,” said Geralyn Endo, member experience for MEMX Options.
“SEC approval of our exchange takes us one step closer to realising the vision of an options exchange dedicated to advancing its members’ needs.”
Earlier this year, MEMX proposed a new pricing model for its real-time equities market data, aimed at providing a “significantly less expensive” service compared to other equities exchange operators.
Following approval from the SEC, the new pricing model imposed a blanket fee of $0.01 for both professional and non-professional users of top-of-book and last sale market data.