Products January 15, 2008

OneChicago Announces Trading of Single Stock Futures on ETFs

OneChicago, LLC, the all-electronic exchange for trading Single Stock Futures (SSFs), a synthetic stock lending and financing tool, today launched the trading of two additional SSFs on exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
Reported by

According to a company announcement, trading began on SSFs of PowerShares QQQ (Nasdaq: QQQQ) and the iShares Russell 2000 (NYSE: IWM). Other OneChicago SSFs on ETFs include the DIAMONDS Trust Series 1 and the Sector Select SPDR Fund.

David G. Downey, CEO of OneChicago, noted in the announcement that “these new listings permit approved portfolio margining customers to realize substantial savings on initial margin requirements for hedged positions utilizing broad based index futures.” The QQQQ and IWM trade with a 1000 multiplier.

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OneChicago provides a Comparison Calculator, which enables users to compare the costs of buying stocks on margin against the returns for using equivalent SSF positions. The calculator can be found at http://www.onechicago.com.

The OneChicago Exchange lists 492 futures on single stocks, five Exchange Traded Funds -including 1 ETF of the 100 share size, and seven ETFs of the 1,000-share size – as well as 10 OneChicago Select Indexes, a series of customer-designed narrow-based security index futures.

Data & Research January 15, 2008

Affluent Seniors a Notable Force in Online Financial Pursuits

Affluent seniors over age 70 spend nearly three times as much of their online time on financial matters as those younger.
Reported by

According to a new report by Spectrem Group, affluent senior citizens above the age of 70 are devoting 32% of their online time to financial pursuits, compared to 13% for those age 70 and younger. In addition, affluent seniors over 70 who have incomes of more than $150,000 a year are spending an even higher percentage of their online time (49%) on financial pursuits.

“Much as we might like to think of managing finances online as the sole domain of the young, affluent seniors are outsurfing them by a healthy margin… Financial services providers would be wise to take this into account when designing new online features and content, lest they risk alienating this important group of affluent investors,” said Catherine S. McBreen, Managing Director of Spectrem Group, in a news release.

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The Spectrem report, “Online Tools: Affluent Use of Provider Web Sites,” is based on a survey of over 500 affluent investors – defined as those with more than $500,000 in investable assets – conducted in August and September 2007.

Those interested in purchasing the Spectrem report should contact Spectrem Group at 641 W. Lake Street, Suite 402, Chicago, IL 60661, (312) 382-8284 or via http://www.spectrem.com.

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