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CBOE Global Markets
Who trades with CBOE Global Markets today?
The rise of retail traders and the surge in zero-days-to-expiration (0DTE) options—which by mid-2025 made up about 52% of S&P 500 option volume—has reshaped CBOE's user base from institutional hedgers to a diverse mix of high-frequency firms and active retail investors.
CBOE's customers now include algorithmic market makers, institutional desks, and growing retail cohorts across North America, Europe, and APAC, driving shifts in product design, liquidity provision, and risk management.
Explore product strategy: CBOE Global Markets Porter's Five Forces Analysis
Who Are CBOE Global Markets’s Main Customers?
CBOE Global Markets serves a dual B2B and B2C audience, with institutions driving most revenue while retail trading has expanded rapidly; institutional clients favor liquidity and sophisticated hedging tools, while retail users are younger, mobile-first traders increasing options volume.
Institutional Clientele
Market makers, hedge funds, asset managers and prop trading firms form the core B2B base, requiring low-latency execution and deep liquidity.
Revenue Concentration
In 2025 institutional trading contributed roughly 70% of Cboe’s transaction revenue, driven by VIX and SPX options usage for macro hedging.
Retail Growth
Retail traders now represent nearly 28% of total options volume as of late 2025, with strong uptake in mini-SPX (XSP) and Nanos options.
Retail Demographics
New entrants skew Gen Z and Millennials, mobile-first, typically financially literate and motivated by income-generation via options selling.
Geography, product preference and account size differentiate segments: institutions hold large, diversified portfolios focused on SPX/VIX products; retail trades high volume of small-size contracts.
Segment Characteristics & Metrics
Key traits, usage patterns and demographics that define CBOE customer demographics and the CBOE target market.
- Age and education: institutional professionals typically aged 25–55 with advanced quantitative degrees.
- Product reliance: institutions heavily use proprietary products like the VIX Index and SPX options for hedging.
- Retail participation: mini-SPX (XSP) and Nanos drove retail volume growth post 24/5 trading expansion (2022–2024).
- Revenue mix: institutional trading ≈ 70% of transaction revenue; retail ≈ 28% of options volume (late 2025).
Growth Strategy of CBOE Global Markets
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What Do CBOE Global Markets’s Customers Want?
Customers of CBOE Global Markets demand liquidity, capital efficiency and advanced risk tools; institutional users seek low-latency execution and deep order books while retail traders prioritize accessibility and lower-cost contract sizes.
Institutional execution needs
Low-latency matching and deep order books reduce slippage for hedge funds and broker-dealers.
Capital efficiency
Portfolio margining offsets positions across asset classes to optimize capital usage for large trading firms.
Risk management
Demand for multi-asset volatility products surged in 2025 as traders managed geopolitical and interest-rate volatility.
Data and connectivity
High-fidelity market data and seamless API integration power algorithmic strategies and automated market-making.
Retail accessibility
Nanos and XSP options provide smaller, cash-settled contracts that lower nominal costs and enable precise risk control for individual traders.
Education and loyalty
The Cboe Options Institute delivers webinars and certifications that increase retention among retail users seeking financial autonomy.
Customer segmentation highlights
Key needs align with client type: institutions prioritize execution, capital efficiency and risk offsets while retail focuses on cost, simplicity and education.
- Institutional: low-latency execution, deep liquidity, portfolio margining
- Retail: accessible contract sizes (Nanos, XSP), cash-settlement preference
- 2025 trend: peak demand for multi-asset volatility products amid macro uncertainty
- Data/connectivity: APIs and real-time feeds required for algorithmic traders
Target Market of CBOE Global Markets
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Where does CBOE Global Markets operate?
Cboe Global Markets' geographical market presence centers on North America, which accounted for approximately 74% of its 2025 net revenue, while the firm has expanded across Europe and Asia-Pacific to support its 24/5 trading model and diversified product distribution.
North America stronghold
The U.S. is the primary hub for CBOE proprietary products, with Chicago and New York as liquidity centers and institutional market makers driving volume.
Canada integration
The 2024 integration of Cboe Canada reinforced ETP listing share in North America, boosting corporate and ETF listings and expanding the CBOE customer base geographic distribution.
Pan-European footprint
Cboe Europe operates across 15 major markets, including the UK, France and Germany, focusing on fragmentation solutions to serve multi-venue trading needs and institutional clients.
Europe — market participants
European activity targets broker-dealers, high-frequency traders and asset managers navigating fragmented equities venues, aligning with CBOE target market segmentation for equities and ETFs.
The Asia-Pacific presence supports overnight liquidity for U.S. products and local client engagement through acquisitions and localization.
Asia-Pacific expansion
Chi-X Asia Pacific acquisitions now operate as Cboe Australia and Cboe Japan, strengthening APAC coverage and 24/5 trading continuity for U.S. markets.
Japan client profile
Japanese demographics favor disciplined retail investors and sophisticated institutional market makers; Cboe localizes data and partners with local brokers to engage this investor profile.
24/5 liquidity strategy
APAC and European trading hours provide critical overnight liquidity for U.S. derivatives, supporting continuous access for CBOE product users and global market participants.
Customer segmentation
Global clients span institutional investors, broker-dealers, HFT firms and retail traders; institutional client breakdown skews revenue toward professional participants in North America.
Market share dynamics
North America remains the dominant source of net revenue, while Europe and APAC offer growth in equities, ETP listings and trading volume diversification.
Further reading
See the Marketing Strategy of CBOE Global Markets article for additional context on geographic and customer segmentation strategies.
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How Does CBOE Global Markets Win & Keep Customers?
CBOE’s customer acquisition leverages proprietary IP like the VIX and S&P 500 licenses to attract volatility and broad-market traders, supported by digital marketing and partnerships with major brokerages; retention relies on data services, tiered incentives and a laddered product path from Nanos to SPX. In 2025 the 'Volatility for All' campaign targeted advisors and sophisticated retail via LinkedIn and financial sponsorships.
IP-Driven Acquisition
Ownership of VIX and S&P 500 index licenses creates a natural draw for traders seeking volatility and broad-market exposure, forming a strategic moat for customer acquisition.
Digital & Brokerage Partnerships
Marketing emphasizes digital channels and alliances with retail brokers such as Robinhood, Charles Schwab and Interactive Brokers to reach CBOE Global Markets audience segments.
2025 Campaign
The 2025 'Volatility for All' campaign used targeted LinkedIn ads and financial news sponsorships to position VIX as a portfolio protection tool for advisors and sophisticated retail.
Content & Education Funnel
A laddered approach moves users from Nanos to educational offerings (Options Institute) and then to standard SPX and multi-leg strategies, increasing lifetime value.
Retention combines economic incentives and cloud-delivered data to keep volumes and reduce churn among varied CBOE market participants.
Institutional Liquidity Programs
Complex rebate structures and Liquidity Provider Programs reward tight spreads and depth, producing near-zero churn among major liquidity providers through 2025.
Cloud Data Access
The Cboe Global Cloud delivers real-time data at scale, removing physical infra barriers and improving retention for retail and professional customers.
Tiered Incentives
Financial incentives are calibrated by volume and liquidity contribution to keep market makers' activity concentrated on Cboe platforms.
Customer Segmentation
Targeting covers retail, sophisticated retail and institutional clients with tailored products and messaging aligned to CBOE customer demographics and investor profiles.
Metrics & Churn
Data-driven tracking of LTV, activation rates and retention showed sustained low churn among major market participants through 2025.
Cross-Sell Pathways
Progression from entry products to advanced contracts increases average revenue per user and deepens engagement across the CBOE product suite.
Key Takeaways
Customer acquisition and retention at Cboe combine proprietary index licensing, brokerage partnerships, digital campaigns and financially aligned liquidity programs to serve a mix of retail and institutional clients.
- Proprietary IP (VIX/SPX) anchors acquisition
- Partnerships with major brokers expand reach
- Cloud data access boosts retail/pro retention
- Rebate programs secure institutional flow
Further context on market positioning and competitor dynamics is available in Competitors Landscape of CBOE Global Markets.
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