General

1.       What is ELX Futures?
ELX Futures, L.P. (ELX Futures) is a new fully regulated electronic futures exchange formed by leading financial institutions to establish a faster, more efficient, competitive alternative for global market participants trading futures contracts.

2.       What products does ELX Futures offer?
ELX Futures luanched electronic trading with a slate of U.S. Treasury Futures contracts.  On June 18, 2010, ELX  added Eurodollar Futures contracts to its suite of products.  ELX Futures will expand into other major asset classes in the future.

3.       What are the benefits of ELX Futures?
ELX Futures allows market arbitrage, both outright and spread execution, and cash/futures basis trading through multiple front ends with an ultra fast matching engine.  There are no shareholder or membership requirements and no surcharges for block trades or EFPs.

4.       What are the fees?
Our compelling fee structure consists of bundled fees (clearing and exchange fees) which vary depending on product for users with monthly Average Daily Volume (ADV) above a specified number of contract sides.  The fee schedule represents a large reduction in costs for almost all market participants.

5.       What are ELX Futures’ block trade thresholds?
There is a 1,000 contract minimum block for 2, 5 and 10-Year Treasury Notes and a 500 contract minimum block for 30-Year and Ultra Long-Term Bonds and Eurodollar Futures.

6.       How do I sign up to automatically receive news releases?
To receive ELX Futures news releases, you can sign up on the ELX Futures website at www.elxfutures.com by clicking the RSS button at the bottom of each page.

7.       When and how is open interest reported?
Open interest is calculated at day’s end and will be reported by ELX Futures to the public the morning following the trading day. 

8.       How do I contact ELX Futures?
See Contact ELX Futures for a list of contact information for ELX staff.

9.       Who are ELX Futures’ founding partners?
ELX Futures’ founding partners are: Bank of America, Barclays Capital, BGC Partners, Breakwater, Citi, Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank Securities, GETCO, Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan, Morgan Stanley, PEAK6 and The Royal Bank of Scotland. 

10.    What forms are necessary to start using ELX Futures?
Prospective users of ELX Futures that wish to have a direct connection must complete either a Participant, an Authorized Customer or an Authorized Trader application.  Click here for more information about the application process. 

11.    Are ELX Futures contracts fungible with CME contracts?
Although the ELX Futures contracts have the same terms and conditions as those listed on CME exchanges, they are not fungible.  ELX Futures contracts clear through the Options Clearing Corporation (OCC) and GME Group contracts clear through CME Clearing.

1.       What is the ELX Futures matching system algorithm?
Each contract within ELX Futures is configured to match orders based on a Pro Rata, FIFO or split Pro Rata algorithm consistent with industry expectations.  Outright 5 year, 10 year and 30 year and Ultra Long-Term contracts match based on the FIFO algorithm.  The 2 year contract matches with a 60/40 split Pro Rata and FIFO distribution and all calendar spreads match based on a Pro Rata algorithm.  ELX Eurodollar outright futures and calendar apreads will operate using a combined First and Pro Rata matching algorithm.  All packs and bundles are matched using a FIFO matching algorithm.

2.       Who is able to trade using the ELX Futures trading platform?
Traders with a futures trading account at an ELX Futures Participant FCM and brokers are able to submit orders to the ELX Futures trading platform through various channels depending on their preference of technology and whether or not they want to have a direct market access relationship with ELX Futures.  All trades must be eligible for clearing in a valid commodity futures trading account carried by an authorized OCC member either directly or via non-clearing FCMs on an omnibus basis.

3.       What are the ELX Futures contract margin rates and where can they be retrieved?
ELX Futures Margin rates will be published on the ELX Futures website and will be available for back office integration through Options and Futures Risk Arrays OFRA file downloads on the CME SPAN website. 

4.       Is my FCM able to clear ELX Futures transactions?
All ELX Futures’ clearing firms (known as Clearing Privilege Holders)  are authorized members of the OCC.  In order to trade ELX products you must have an open account with an OCC member that supports ELX Futures trading.  Please contact ELX Futures, OCC or your FCM to determine if your account authorizes you to trade ELX Futures products.

5.       How are settlement prices calculated?
Settlements are calculated using market information at the end of the traditional trading day, 3:00 p.m. ET.  ELX Futures staff will consider all market information on its exchange as well as other Designated Contract Markets (DCMs) offering identical products.  Assuming similar market conditions, it is expected that the review process will produce a daily settlement price consistent with that of the comparable products on other DCMs.

6.       When are settlement prices published? 
Final settlements are published to the ELX Futures website by 5:15 pm ET.

7.       How are block trades reported?
Block trades must be submitted to OCC by Clearing Privilege Holders.  See Submission of EFRP (EFF) and Block Trades for details.

8.       How soon after a transaction is executed must blocks be reported?
Block trades of any size must be reported by the seller within 15 minutes of execution.

9.    What happens if I am involved in an error trade?
A request for trade review must be made within 5 minutes of trade execution time.  Trades that fall outside the No Bust Range are subject to cancellation or price amendment. Trade bust requests will be reported to ELX Futures Support and will be reviewed against prevailing market conditions.  The ELX Futures trade bust policy is detailed in the ELX Futures Rulebook. No bust ranges are provided for each contract on the specifications page.

10.    How are trade inquiries and bust notifications delivered?
Trade inquiry and bust notifications are sent out via the ELX Futures e-mail alert service application that sends notifications to contacts provided to ELX Futures through the Participant, Authorized Customer and Authorized Trader application process.

11.    Are there surcharges for EFRPs or block trades?
There are no surcharges for EFRPs or block trades.

12.    How is risk managed on ELX Futures?
The ELX Risk Management System provides Clearing Privilege Holders the ability to limit trading quantities, establish position limits, and monitor utilization for those User IDs that have been authorized for trading on ELX.  They must provide a clearing guaranty as per the Primary Clearing Privilege Authorization.

13.    What are the regulatory reporting requirements for ELX Futures?
ELX Futures requires all FCMs to file Large Trader Reports and regular financial statements directly with ELX Futures in addition to any U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) obligations.

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