As part of its continued commitment to deliver operational excellence to the users of the U.S. equity derivatives markets, OCC, the world's largest equity derivatives clearing organization, today announced a reduction in clearing fees from four and a half cents ($0.045) per contract to two cents ($0.02) per contract effective June 1, 2021, subject to regulatory review.

“Participation in listed options markets in 2021 has resulted in historic cleared contract volumes, outpacing even 2020 highs,” said John Davidson, OCC Chief Executive Officer. “March and January 2021 were the first and second highest volume months, respectively, in OCC’s history, with March volume exceeding 904 million total contracts cleared. These record volumes have provided us with an opportunity to enhance OCC’s financial resilience to the benefit of our market participants and the greater investing public.”

“We take seriously our duty to manage OCC in a way that ensures we meet regulatory expectations and responsibly invest in OCC’s infrastructure, while also serving market participants as a financially responsible steward of clearing services,” said Scot Warren, OCC Chief Operating Officer. “Because of our strong focus on expense discipline coupled with record contract volumes, we can continue to take steps to lower costs for market participants, consistent with the Capital Management Policy, while also investing in our enhanced operational resiliency and technology.”

The two-cent clearing fee follows a previous fee reduction from five and a half cents ($0.055) per contract to four and a half cents ($0.045) per contract, which went into effect September 1, 2020. In December, OCC’s Board of Directors approved a refund to clearing member firms of $156 million to be paid on April 19, 2021.

About OCC

The Options Clearing Corporation (OCC) is the world's largest equity derivatives clearing organization. Founded in 1973, OCC operates under the jurisdiction of both the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as a registered clearing agency and the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) as a Derivatives Clearing Organization. Named 2020 Best Clearing House - Equities by Markets Media for the third consecutive year, OCC now provides central counterparty (CCP) clearing and settlement services to 19 exchanges and trading platforms for options, financial futures, and securities lending transactions. More information about OCC is available at www.theocc.com.

Copyright © 2021. The Options Clearing Corporation. All rights reserved.

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