U.S. patent application number 14/080425 was filed with the patent office on 2014-03-13 for method and system for generating and trading composite contracts.
This patent application is currently assigned to Chicago Mercantile Exchange, Inc.. The applicant listed for this patent is Chicago Mercantile Exchange, Inc.. Invention is credited to Matthew J. Kelly, Richard J. McDonald.
Application Number | 20140074686 14/080425 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 41327907 |
Filed Date | 2014-03-13 |
United States Patent
Application |
20140074686 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Kelly; Matthew J. ; et
al. |
March 13, 2014 |
METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR GENERATING AND TRADING COMPOSITE
CONTRACTS
Abstract
The disclosed embodiments provide a system and method for
automatically generating a composite contract characterized by at
least one parameter. A first subset of eligible component contracts
is identified from a set of available component contracts wherein
each of the available component contracts is characterized by at
least one attribute. A second subset of component contracts is then
selected from the first subset to generate the composite
contract.
Inventors: |
Kelly; Matthew J.; (Western
Springs, IL) ; McDonald; Richard J.; (Evanston,
IL) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Chicago Mercantile Exchange, Inc. |
Chicago |
IL |
US |
|
|
Assignee: |
Chicago Mercantile Exchange,
Inc.
Chicago
IL
|
Family ID: |
41327907 |
Appl. No.: |
14/080425 |
Filed: |
November 14, 2013 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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12576571 |
Oct 9, 2009 |
8589279 |
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14080425 |
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10301775 |
Nov 20, 2002 |
7624062 |
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12576571 |
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60365423 |
Mar 18, 2002 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
705/37 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G06Q 40/00 20130101;
G06Q 40/06 20130101; G06Q 40/04 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
705/37 |
International
Class: |
G06Q 40/04 20120101
G06Q040/04 |
Claims
1. A method comprising: receiving an instruction to generate a
composite futures contract; identifying a first subset of eligible
component contracts from a set of available component contracts;
selecting a second subset of component contracts from the first
subset; and generating the composite futures contract based on the
second subset, the composite futures contract characterized by a
value determined based on a value of at least one contract of the
second subset of component contracts, wherein the value of the
composite futures contract, once determined, is linked with
attributes of the second subset of component contracts and is free
to fluctuate as the attributes of the second subset of component
contracts fluctuate.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein the generating further comprises:
determining at least one value of the at least one attribute of
each of the component contracts in the second subset; and defining
the at least one parameter of the composite futures contract as a
function of each of the values.
3. The method of claim 2, wherein the at least one attribute
comprises a price of the component contract and the at least one
parameter comprises a price of the composite futures contract.
4. The method of claim 1, further comprising: providing
notification that the composite futures contract is available for
trading.
5. The method of claim 1, wherein the selecting further comprises
selecting an eligible component contract from the first subset
component contract for inclusion in the second subset based on a
volatility of the eligible component contract.
6. The method of claim 1, wherein the selecting further comprises
selecting an eligible component contract from the first subset
component contract for inclusion in the second subset based on the
at least one attribute of the eligible component contract.
7. The method of claim 1, wherein the selecting further comprises
selecting an eligible component contract from the first subset
component contract for inclusion in the second subset based on a
trading volume of the eligible component contract.
8. The method of claim 1, wherein identifying further comprises
identifying an available component contract from the set available
component contracts for inclusion in the first subset based on at
least one attribute of the set available component contracts,
wherein the set available component contracts are represented by
data stored on a data storage.
9. The method of claim 1, wherein the selecting further comprises
receiving at least one vote from a market participant, wherein the
at least one vote represents a choice by at least one market
participant to select at least one of the eligible component
contracts for inclusion in the second subset.
10. The method of claim 9, further comprises obligating the at
least one market participant, based on the at least one vote, to
generate a minimum trading volume for the composite futures
contract.
11. The method of claim 10, wherein the minimum trading volume for
the, at least one market participant is a function of a number of
votes received from the at least one market participant.
12. The method of claim 9, further comprising selecting an eligible
component contract from the first subset of eligible component
contract for inclusion in the second subset based on the votes.
13. The method of claim 9, further comprising allocating votes to
each of the market participants based on trading volumes of at
least one previously traded composite futures contract.
14. The method of claim 13, further comprising selecting an
eligible component contract from the first subset of eligible
component contracts for inclusion in the second subset based on the
votes.
15. The method of claim 1, wherein the instruction is a first
instruction and the composite futures contract is a first composite
futures contract, and wherein the method further comprises:
receiving a second instruction to generate a second composite
futures contract; identifying a third subset of eligible component
contracts from the set of available component contracts, each of
the available component contracts being characterized by the at
least one attribute; and selecting a fourth subset of component
contracts from the third subset; and generating the second
composite futures contract based on the fourth subset.
16. The method of claim 15, wherein the generating the second
composite futures contract further comprises: determining at least
one value of the at least one attribute of each of the second
composite contract in the fourth subsets; and defining the at least
one parameter of the second composite contract as a function of
each of the values.
17. A system comprising: a composite futures contract generator
operative to receive an instruction to generate a composite futures
contract; further wherein the composite futures contracts generator
is operative to identify a first subset of eligible component
contracts from a set of available component contracts, the
composite futures contracts generator being further operative to
select a second subset of component contracts from the first
subset, and generate the composite futures contract based on the
second subset, and the composite futures contract characterized by
a value determined based on a value of at least one contract of the
second subset of component contracts, wherein the value of the
composite futures contract, once determined, is linked with
attributes of the second subset of component contracts and is free
to fluctuate as the attributes of the second subset of component
contracts fluctuate; and a trading engine coupled with the
composite futures contract generator, wherein the trading engine is
operative to receive the composite futures contract for
trading.
18. The system of claim 17, further comprising a composite contract
terminator coupled to the composite futures contract generator,
wherein the composite contract terminator is operative to receive
information from the composite contract generator.
19. A apparatus comprising: a first interface operative to receive
an instruction to generate a composite contract; a processor
coupled to the first interface, wherein the processor is operative
to receive the instruction; an identifier coupled to the processor,
wherein the processor accesses the identifier to identify a first
subset of eligible component contracts from a set of available
component contracts; and wherein, responsive to an identified first
subset of eligible components contracts, the processor is operative
to select a second subset of component contracts from the first
subset, wherein the processor is further operative to generate a
composite futures contract based on the second subset, the
composite futures contract being characterized by a value
determined based on a value of at least one contract of the second
subset of component contracts, wherein the value of the composite
futures contract, once determined, is linked with attributes of the
second subset of component contracts and is free to fluctuate as
the attributes of the second subset of component contracts
fluctuate.
20. The apparatus of claim 19, further comprising a data storage
coupled to the identifier, wherein the data storage includes data
representative of the available component contracts.
Description
RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is a continuation under 37 C.F.R.
.sctn.1.53(b) of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/576,571 filed
Oct. 9, 2009 (Attorney Docket No. 4672/762) to issue as U.S. Pat.
No. 8,589,279, which claims the benefit to U.S. patent application
Ser. No. 10/301,775 filed Nov. 20, 2002 (Attorney Docket No.
4672/231) now U.S. Pat. No. 7,624,062, which claims the benefit to
U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/365, 423 filed Mar. 18,
2002, the entire disclosures of which are hereby incorporated by
reference.
COPYRIGHT NOTICE
[0002] A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains
material which is subject to copyright protection. The copyright
owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of
the patent document or the patent disclosure, as it appears in the
Patent and Trademark Office patent file or records, but otherwise
reserves all copyright rights whatsoever.
BACKGROUND
[0003] Many financial markets, such as the New York Stock Exchange,
American Stock Exchange, Chicago Mercantile Exchange, Tokyo Nikkei
Exchange and other financial markets drive the economies of
countries throughout the world. These markets measure the movement
of investments or financial instruments. Financial instruments are
assets or items with value that may be purchased for income,
hedging, or capital appreciation.
[0004] There are many different types of financial instruments, for
example stocks, bonds, futures contracts. Stocks are shares
entitling the stockholder to dividends and to other rights of
ownership, such as voting rights. A stockholder (a.k.a., a
shareholder) has a claim to part of the assets and earnings of the
corporation.
[0005] Futures contracts are standardized agreements, traded on a
futures exchange, to buy or sell a commodity at a specified price
at a date in the future. A futures contract specifies the
commodity, quality, quantity, delivery date and delivery point or
cash settlement. Traditionally, a commodity is a bulk good traded
on an exchange, cash or other type of market. Some examples of a
commodity include grain, oil, oats, gold, silver and natural gas.
More recently, futures contracts have been based on commodities
that include foreign currencies, financial instruments and stock
indexes. Futures contracts are transferable between parties.
[0006] Bundle contracts, also referred to as composite contracts,
are exchange-traded agreements to buy or sell a combination of
financial instruments, such as a combination of stocks, futures
contracts etc. Some composite contracts, including those known as
X-funds, traded at the Board of Trade of the City of Chicago, are
vehicles to replicate the returns of multiple financial instruments
such as futures contracts in a unit, i.e. with one action. In other
situations, when a composite contract is bought and/or sold, the
actual underlying component contracts are bought and/or sold all at
once. The composite contract simplifies trading by permitting the
trader to deal with a single instrument having a single set of
parameters, for example one price and one quantity, rather than
with multiple instruments having different prices and quantities,
all at one time. The first type of composite contract is a separate
entity with parameters of its own, such as contract size and
pricing convention, where the parameters are computed based on the
attributes of the underlying component contracts. The attributes of
the underlying component contracts used to compute the parameters
of the composite contract, taken alone or in combination, may
include the price, the quantity, the volatility, the expiration, or
other attributes, now or later developed, of the underlying
component contracts. The second type of composite commodity has
similar parameters, including its own pricing convention, but
differs in that a transaction is an expedited surrogate for
transactions in the constituent instruments. That is, positions are
established or offset in the constituent instruments per the
definition of the composite commodity.
[0007] As an example of such a composite commodity, we may consider
the uses made of a particular futures contract. Eurodollar (ED)
futures contracts are futures contracts based on "eurodollars,"
which are time deposits denominated in U.S. dollars that are
deposited in commercial banks outside the U.S. The Eurodollar
futures contract, developed and introduced by The Chicago
Mercantile Exchange ("CME") in 1981, represents an interest rate on
a three-month deposit of $1 million. Eurodollar futures contracts
are listed according to a regular pattern: quarterly contracts that
terminate in March, June, September, and December ("March Quarterly
Cycle contracts") plus additional contracts in the four nearest
months not in the March Quarterly Cycle. The March Quarterly Cycle
contracts are frequently purchased and sold in equally-weighted
groups of four, such as the June 2003, September 2003, December
2003, and March 2004 contracts; these groups are called packs.
These four consecutive series of ED futures contracts are quoted on
an average net change basis from the previous day's daily
settlement price, rounded to one-quarter of a basis point (or
tick).
[0008] A Eurodollar pack, made up of four consecutive quarterly
contracts as discussed above, is designated by a color code,
similar to the codes used to designate the underlying ED futures
contracts that correspond to its position on a yield curve.
Generally nine different packs are traded at any given time, such
as red, green, blue, gold, purple, orange, pink, silver and copper,
that correspond to Eurodollar future years 2-10.
[0009] A combination of packs is referred to as an ED bundle. A
Eurodollar futures bundle describes the simultaneous sale or
purchase of each one of a series of consecutive Eurodollar packs or
Eurodollar futures contracts from one to ten years. (For historical
reasons the group of the nearest four contracts in the March
Quarterly Cycle is called a bundle, instead of a pack.) The first
contract in any bundle is usually the first quarterly contract in
the Eurodollar futures strip. Strips of ED futures are simply the
coordinated purchase or sale of a series of futures contracts with
successive quarterly expiration dates. One exception to the first
contract in the bundle being the first quarterly contract in the ED
futures strip is the 5-year "forward" bundle, which covers years
five through ten of the Eurodollars futures strip. For example, on
Mar. 31, 2001, the first contract in a 5-year "forward" bundle
would be June 2006 (the 21st contract in the strip), and December
2011 (the 40th contract) the last. Bundles and packs can also be
transacted beginning with any contract month in the March Quarterly
Cycle, so long as the most deferred contract in the combination is
listed for trading. Forty contracts in the March Quarterly Cycle
are listed for trading at any given time.
[0010] In any bundle, the price is quoted in terms of net change
during the current trading session from the previous day's daily
settlement price. Specifically, the bundle's price quotation will
reflect the simple average of the net price changes of each of the
bundle's constituent contracts, rounded to one-quarter of a basis
point (or tick).
[0011] As an example, consider that all of the nearest 21 contracts
(e.g., the June 01 Eurodollar to the June 06 Eurodollar) have
enjoyed a three-tick increase in the price since yesterday's
settlement; at the same time the prices of each of the next seven
contracts (e.g., the September 05 Eurodollar to the March 07
Eurodollar) have posted net gains of four ticks. Under these
conditions, the implied fair-value price quotation for a seven-year
bundle would be:
[{21*+3)+(7*+4)]/28=+3.25 ticks
[0012] This example illustrates an important point that unlike
Eurodollar futures prices which are generally quoted in increments
of one-half basis point, bundle prices are quoted in increments of
one-quarter (1/4) of a basis point. For Eurodollar futures, the
dollar value of a one-basis point move in the futures price is
equal to $25. In contrast, for Eurodollar packs and bundles, the
DV01 will always be a multiple of $25, $100 in the case of a pack,
$200 in the case of a two-year bundle, etc. LIBOR is the rate of
interest at which banks offer to lend funds to other banks, in
marketable size, in the London Interbank market.
[0013] When a trade occurs, the particulars of the transaction are
finalized and confirmed by the buyer and seller. For example, when
a buyer and seller have agreed upon the price and quantity of a
bundle, they must assign mutually agreeable prices to each of the
bundle's constituents. In principle, the buyer and seller may set
these component prices with one restriction: the price of at least
one constituent Eurodollar contract must lay within that contract's
trading range for the day (assuming that at least one of the
Eurodollar contracts in the bundle has established a trading
range). In the vast majority of cases, traders use a computerized
system provided by the Exchange and located on the trading floor
that automatically assigns individual prices to the contracts
within the bundles.
[0014] Bundles are simple structures. They are well suited to
traders and investors who deal in LIBOR-based floating rate
products. Such traders could include investment banks that
routinely carry syndication inventories of floating-rate notes,
corporate treasuries that issue floating-rate debt, or commercial
bankers who wish to hedge the risk exposure entailed in periodic
loan-rollover agreements.
[0015] Some bundles' most avid followers are those market
participants who deal in long-dated Treasury-Eurodollar ("TED")
spreads. A Treasury note or T-note is a marketable fixed-interest
rate U.S. government debt security with a maturity greater than 1
year and 10 years or less. A Treasury bill or T-bill is an U.S.
government debt security with a maturity less than 1 year. T-bills
do not pay a fixed interest rate and they are issued through a
competitive bidding process at a discount from par. Such TED
spreads trades entail the purchase (or sale) of a treasury security
and the simultaneous sale (or purchase) of a strip of Eurodollar
futures contracts with a comparable notional term to maturity. A
frequently encountered version of these trades comprises a long
position in the two-year Treasury note and a short position in some
combination of the nearest seven or eight Eurodollar contracts.
[0016] Another method by which traders attempt to associate or
combine multiple financial instruments is via "synthetic
contracts", another form of composite commodity. A "synthetic
contract" is a method of referring to a net position of a portfolio
or a portion of a portfolio. Synthetic contracts are not entities
in themselves but represent means of creating one kind of commodity
through combinations of other commodities. The constituent
components of the synthetic contract are traded individually,
unlike a composite contract which is associated with its component
contracts, as discussed above.
[0017] A synthetic futures contract can be created as a combination
of a put and a call on the same underlying asset with the same
strike price. A synthetic futures in which the put is sold and the
call is purchased is bullish, i.e. hoping for a price rise, is
referred to as a "synthetic long futures." A synthetic futures in
which the put is purchased and the call is sold is bearish, i.e.
hoping for a price fall, is referred to as a "synthetic short
futures." A "synthetic call option" is a combination of a long
futures contract and a long put, also referred to as "a synthetic
long call." A synthetic call option comprising a combination of a
short futures contract and a short put is also referred to as "a
synthetic short call." A "synthetic option" is a combination of a
futures contract and an option, in which one component, either the
contract or the option, is bullish and the other component is
bearish. A "synthetic put option" is a combination of a short
futures contract and a long call, also referred to as a "synthetic
long put." A combination of a long futures contract and a short
call is referred to as a "synthetic short put." Generally,
synthetic contracts include any financial instrument that is
created using a collection of other assets whose combined features
are economically the same as those of the instrument(s) it
replicates.
[0018] Despite their popularity, such transactions in composite
contracts have suffered due to lack of any generic standard. Bond
dealerships that promote long-date Treasury-Eurodollar spreads to
their clients tend to recommend trades that involve odd numbers of
Eurodollar contracts, differing from one point in the Eurodollar
strip to the next ("weighted bundle or pack"). The dealers
customarily justify their formulations by appealing to proprietary
yield-curve models. These models purport to link the futures spot
interest rates that are represented by the Eurodollar futures strip
to the implied zero-coupon yield curve that is embedded in the
prices of the U.S. treasury securities.
[0019] Further, due to the characteristics of the underlying
financial instruments, such as Eurodollar (ED) futures contracts,
economically equivalent composite contracts tend to be
unevenly-weighted. In addition, composite contracts, such as ED
bundle contracts are not widely available, readily acceptable and
they do not provide an interpretable benchmark against which their
performance can be judged. Further, the process of constructing a
composite contract, such as a weighted ED bundle contract, is long
and tedious, which prohibits rapid execution of trades in the
component contracts. Synthetic contracts provide a convenient
reference system for traders to refer to their portfolios but are
limited as to the mix of underlying contracts that can be referred
to and do not provide for simplified trading or ease of
benchmarking
[0020] Accordingly, there is a need for a system to simplify the
creation and trading of composite contracts, increase the
availability of such contracts to traders, improve their execution
rates and simplify interpretation of their performance.
SUMMARY
[0021] The present invention is defined by the following claims,
and nothing in this section should be taken as a limitation on
those claims. By way of introduction, the preferred embodiments
described below relate to a system for generating a composite
futures contract characterized by at least one parameter. The
system includes a terminal operative to transmit an instruction to
generate a composite futures contract and a composite futures
contract generator coupled with the terminal. Preferably the
composite futures contract generator is operative to receive the
instruction. The composite futures contract generator is further
operative to optionally identify a first subset of eligible
component contracts from a set of available component contracts.
Each of the available component contracts are characterized by at
least one attribute. The composite futures contracts generator is
further operative to select a second subset of component contracts
from the first subset. Preferably, the composite futures contract
generator can generate the composite futures contract based on the
second subset. The system further includes a trading engine coupled
with the composite futures contract generator. The trading engine
is operative to receive the composite futures contract for
trading.
[0022] The preferred embodiments further relate to a method for
automatically generating a first composite futures contract
characterized by at least one parameter. In one embodiment, the
method includes receiving a first instruction to generate the first
composite futures contract, identifying a first subset of eligible
component contracts from a set of available component contracts,
wherein each of the available component contracts are characterized
by at least one attribute, selecting a second subset of component
contracts from the first subset, and generating the first composite
futures contract based on the second subset.
[0023] Further aspects and advantages of the invention are
discussed below in conjunction with the preferred embodiments.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0024] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of one embodiment of a
composite contract system;
[0025] FIG. 2 illustrates a schematic diagram of one embodiment of
a composite contract generator for use with the system of FIG.
1;
[0026] FIG. 3 illustrates a schematic diagram of one embodiment of
an optional composite contract terminator for use with the system
of FIG. 1;
[0027] FIG. 4 is a flow chart that depicts the generation of a
composite contract by the composite contract system shown in FIG.
1;
[0028] FIG. 5 illustrates an exemplary structure of a composite
contract and its relationship with its component contracts;
[0029] FIG. 6 depicts a market participation function of the flow
chart of FIG. 4; and
[0030] FIG. 7 depicts a weighing function of the flow chart of FIG.
4.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PRESENTLY PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0031] The present embodiment of the invention is described herein
with reference to the drawings, where like components are
identified with the same reference numerals. These descriptions are
intended to be exemplary, in nature and are not intended to limit
the scope of the invention.
[0032] Composite contracts, also referred to as bundles, are
exchange traded agreements to buy or sell a combination of
financial instruments, for example a combination of stocks and/or
futures contracts, herein referred to as the components, component
contracts or component futures contracts. Composite contracts are
vehicles to buy/trade multiple futures contract as a unit, i.e.
with one action. Parameters or characteristics of the composite
contract, for example the price of financial instruments, are
computed based on attributes of the underlying components such as
the underlying component futures contracts.
[0033] FIG. 5 shows an exemplary composite contract 500 having
parameters 509, such as a price or an expiration date. In this
embodiment, the exemplary composite contract 500 is associated with
three component contracts 503, 505, 507 each of which is also
characterized by attributes 511, such as a price or an expiration.
The association of the composite contract 500 with the
corresponding component contracts 503, 505, 507 permits the trading
of the component contracts 503, 505, 507 by trading of a single
composite contract 500. As will be described below, preferably the
parameters 509 of the composite contract 500 are determined based
on the attributes 511 of the underlying component contracts 503,
505, 507. For example, the maturity date or expiration date of the
composite contract 500 may be set to the earliest maturity date or
expiration date of the underlying component contracts 503, 505,
507.
[0034] When computing the parameters 509 of the composite contract
500, the values of the attributes 511 of the underlying component
contracts 503, 505, 507 may be modified, such as scaled and/or
weighted to control their influence on the parameter 509
computation. Once the parameters 509 are computed, the composite
contract 500 can be traded using those parameters 509. As trades
occur, through normal market mechanisms, the parameters 509 may be
adjusted from the originally computed values. In one embodiment,
the parameters 509, once computed, are disassociated with the
attributes 511 of the underlying component contracts 503, 505, 507
and are free to fluctuate independently as trades occur. In another
embodiment, the parameters 509 of the composite contract 500 remain
linked with the attributes 511 of the underlying components
contracts 503, 505, 507 and may fluctuate as the attributes
fluctuate according to the normal operation of the market
mechanisms.
[0035] In the disclosed system, an instruction to generate a
composite contract is received by a composite contract generator.
The composite contract generator analyzes the instruction and
proceeds to generate the composite contract by optionally
identifying a first subset of eligible component contracts from a
set of available component contracts (all futures contracts,
options on futures, options on equities, stocks, bonds, mutual
funds, mortgages, exchange traded funds, etc.). Available component
contracts are all the financial instruments, such as stocks,
certificates of deposits, futures contracts, etc that are available
for trading. The eligible component contracts are the subset of
available contracts that meet specified criteria, i.e. include or
match an attribute that was requested in the instruction sent to
the composite contract generator, such as a particular price,
volatility etc. Eligible component contracts are those instruments
which qualify to be included within composite contracts.
Identifying the first subset of eligible component contracts may be
performed by limiting the eligible component contracts by any of a
variety of mechanisms. For example, an exchange may wish to have a
first subset of eligible component contracts include only contracts
listed for trading at that exchange or limit the first subset of
eligible component contracts to futures on equity index products or
agricultural commodities. This may be performed implicitly by
limiting the available component contracts to only the eligible
component contracts or by an actual selection process.
[0036] After the eligible component contracts are identified, a
second subset of component contracts is selected from the first
subset of component contracts, i.e. the set of eligible component
contracts, for inclusion in the composite contract. Once the second
subset of component contracts is selected, i.e., once the composite
contract is created, the attributes of each of the component
contracts are utilized to compute the parameters of the composite
contract. For example, the current trading prices of all of the
component contracts are averaged to arrive at the trading price of
the composite contract. The composite contract is then
associated/linked with the component contracts in such a manner
such that they are traded together, i.e. when a trader trades the
composite contract, the trader effectively trades the underlying
component contracts The generated composite contract is then made
available for trading by transmitting the composite contract to a
trading engine, such as the GLOBEX.RTM. electronic trading system
provided by the Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc., located in
Chicago, Ill.
[0037] Prior systems and methods for generating composite
contracts, such as ED bundle contracts, produced composite
contracts which were unevenly weighted, suffered from limited
availability, limited market acceptance and/or could only be
evaluated against non-standard benchmarks. In addition, prior
processes for constructing a composite contract were long and
tedious, prohibiting rapid execution of trading of the underlying
component contracts.
[0038] The disclosed system for generating composite contracts
provides a standard composite contract that is widely available,
readily acceptable and provides a standardized benchmark by which
to judge the performance of parameters of the composite contract.
In addition, the disclosed system provides a simple and easy
process for generating a composite contract that enables rapid
execution of trading of the component contracts.
[0039] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of one embodiment of a
composite contract system 100 for generating and trading composite
contracts. The composite contract system 100 includes: a terminal
101, a composite contract generator 103, and a trading engine 105,
where all the components are coupled with each other in any
suitable combination by a communication link 102 so as to
facilitate communications between the components. In an alternative
embodiment, the system 100 further includes a composite contract
terminator 107 also coupled in combination with the above
components by communications link 102. As used herein, the phrase
"coupled with" is defined to mean directly connected to or
indirectly connected through one or more intermediate components.
Such intermediate components may include both hardware and software
based components.
[0040] Preferably, the communication link 102 connects the terminal
101, composite contract generator 103, trading engine 105 and the
optional composite contract terminator 107 over a small
geographical area. Alternatively, the communication link 102 may
connect the terminal 101, composite contract generator 103, trading
engine 105 and the optional composite contract terminator 107 over
a vast geographical area. In one embodiment, the communication link
102 includes a network such as a local area network ("LAN"), a wide
area network ("WAN"), a metropolitan area network, a virtual area
network, a wireless local network, a local bus, a direct or
indirect satellite network, or combinations thereof. Further, the
communications link 102 may include a publicly accessible network
such as the Internet, a privately accessible network such as an
Intranet, or a combination of privately and publicly accessible
networks. In one embodiment, the communication link 102 includes a
data conversion device, such as a modem, that converts data from
one form into another, e.g. converts data from one form usable with
electronic equipment to another form useable over wireless or
landline communication technologies. Such conversion devices
include conventional modems that can be used with the public
switched telephone network, cellular modems and other network
interface devices. Preferably, the communication link 102 provides
a high-bandwidth data communication link that achieves high
transmission speeds and low latency. Further, the communications
link 102 may utilize secure protocols, such as secure-Hypertext
Transfer Protocol ("HTTP"), pretty good privacy ("PGP"), etc., to
ensure that communications among the devices coupled with the link
102 are authorized, authentic and/or otherwise uncompromised.
[0041] Preferably, terminal 101 includes a memory, an interface, a
processor, and operating firmware/software that perform functions,
such as receiving input from a user, generating and transmitting
instructions to a composite contract generator 103 to generate a
composite contract and receiving a response to those instructions.
Terminal 101 may be a conventional computer, a hybrid personal
computer, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a laptop computer, a
mobile telephone or any other device that can receive and send
information through a communication link. Terminal 101 may also
include a display device, a keyboard, a mouse, a touch panel, a
graphical user interface (GUI), a printer, a scanner, and/or other
input/output devices associated with a computer for interacting
with a user of the terminal 101. In one embodiment, terminal 101 is
a personal computer having a Pentium class processor, a suitable
memory, hard disk and user interface and a network interface
compatible with the communications link 102.
[0042] As shown in FIG. 1, terminal 101 is connected through the
communication link 102 to the trading engine 105. The
communications link 102 also connects the trading engine 105 to the
composite contract generator 103 and, in an alternate embodiment,
to the composite contract terminator 107. In the disclosed
embodiments, the trading engine 105 includes a matching system,
i.e. a system capable of receiving bids and offers and otherwise
managing the execution of trades in a marketplace, such as the
GLOBEX.RTM. trading system provided by the Chicago Mercantile
Exchange Inc., located in Chicago, Illinois. The trading engine 105
matches orders electronically according to one or more trade
matching algorithms, such as a first-in-first-served algorithm, an
allocation algorithm, or a market maker priority algorithm. An
"order" can be a bid to purchase or an offer to sell. In one
embodiment, the trading engine 105 is implemented as a software
program which executes on a computer system capable of executing
the trading engine 105 and interfacing with the communications link
102. Alternatively, the trading engine 105 may be implemented as a
combination of hardware and software.
[0043] Although the trading engine 105 and the composite contract
generator 103 are illustrated as separate devices that are capable
of being run on one or more computers, in alternative embodiments
these systems and methods can also be integrated within a single
device. The trading engine 105 is further capable of operating in
an automatic, semi-automatic or manual fashion.
[0044] The terminal 101 is also connected by the communication link
102 to the composite contract generator 103. The composite contract
generator 103 is further connected by the communication link 102 to
the trading engine 105 and the composite contract terminator
107.
[0045] FIG. 2 illustrates a schematic diagram of an embodiment of a
composite contract generator. The composite contract generator 103
receives an instruction from terminal 101 to generate a composite
contract and subsequently provide notification to the terminal 101
that the composite contract is available for trading or currently
is being traded. In one embodiment, the instruction includes
criteria received from the user of the terminal 101 which the
generator 103 uses for generating a composite contract. Such
criteria may include the types of contracts that the component
contracts are to be selected from, i.e., a specification of which
contracts, from all available contracts, are eligible for inclusion
in the composite contract. Further, the criteria contained within
the instruction may include conditions or factors for determining
which of the eligible component contracts to select for actual
inclusion in the resultant composite contract. In addition, the
instruction may include other specifications such as baseline
values for use in computing the trading price, initial trading
availability date, expiration date, or other trading parameters. In
one embodiment, the instruction is formatted using a proprietary
format. Alternatively, the instruction may utilize a standardized
instruction format.
[0046] The criteria by which a composite contact is generated may
be specified entirely within the instruction, specified entirely as
a function of the selection algorithm of the selection processor
203, described below, or a combination thereof. The disclosed
embodiments balance the degree of control that a user has with
respect to specifying the selection criteria against simplifying
the generation process. In one embodiment, the degree of user
control may be varied depending on the user.
[0047] Once the composite contract has been generated, the
composite contract generator 103 provides the trading engine 105
with information relating to the generated composite contract to
initiate trading of the composite contract. For example, the
generator 103 may provide the trading engine 105 with an electronic
record containing a description of the composite contract, i.e. a
list of the component contracts, the composite contract price and
any other parameters that the trading engine 105 requires to make
the composite contract available to the market participants.
[0048] The composite contract generator 103 includes a first
interface 201, a selection processor 203, an identifier 205, a data
storage 207, a second interface 209 and a notifier 211. The first
interface 201 couples the generator 103 with the terminal 101 as
described above. The selection processor 203 is coupled with the
first interface 201, the identifier 205, the second interface 209
and the notifier 211. The identifier 205 is further coupled with
the data storage 207. The composite contract generator 103 may be
implemented in either hardware or software, or combinations
thereof. In one embodiment, the composite contract generator 103 is
implemented within software residing within a computer coupled with
the communications link 102.
[0049] The first interface 201 receives information from terminal
101 via the communication link 102, such as an instruction to
generate a composite contract, as described above. Information
received from terminal 101 by the first interface 201 is
transmitted from first interface 201 to the selection processor
203. In one embodiment, the first interface 201 further generates
an acknowledgement communication to the terminal 101 acknowledging
receipt of the information.
[0050] In one embodiment, the first interface 201 is a software
algorithm that is compatible with the communication link 102. For
example the first interface 201 is an application program interface
(API) program compatible with communication link 102.
Alternatively, the first interface 201 is a hardware device having
pre-processing functionality that is compatible with the
communication link 102. For example, the first interface 201 is a
network interface, optical sensor interface, or Ethernet interface
that is compatible with the communication link 102. In another
embodiment, the first interface 201 may be implemented as a
combination of software and hardware that is compatible with the
communication link 102. Further, the first interface 201 may
include software functionality to decode, decrypt, authenticate or
otherwise implement secure communications between the terminal 101
and the generator 103.
[0051] Selection processor 203 receives the information, i.e.
instructions, from the first interface 201 and acts on the
instructions. Generally, selection processor 203 identifies, based
on the instructions it received from the terminal 101 via the first
interface 201, which contracts, from all available contracts, are
eligible to be considered for inclusion in the composite contract,
also referred to herein as a first level selection. Identification
of eligible component contracts from the pool of available
contracts is performed by the identifier 205. The identifier 205 is
coupled with a data storage 207 which stores representative data of
all available contracts. In one embodiment, as will be described,
the identifier performs a basic boolean, numeric or alphanumeric
search on the data stored in the data storage using search
parameters provided by the selection processor 203. In this
embodiment, the identifier 205 operates under the direction of the
selection processor 203. In an alternate embodiment, the selection
processor 203 includes the identifier 205. In another embodiment,
the data storage 207 is kept up to date by the trading engine 105
as to the currently available contracts.
[0052] Preferably, the data storage 207 is a conventional storage
system, such as a hard disk or memory. Data storage 207 stores data
regarding the following contracts available in the associated
exchange/trading engine: interest rate futures contracts, commodity
futures contracts, domestic currency futures contracts, foreign
currency contracts, exchange futures contracts, single stock
futures contracts, chemical futures contracts, financial index
futures contracts, weather futures contracts, foreign based futures
contracts, stocks, options, certificates of deposits, bonds, an
amount of cash, assets, and other exchange traded instruments, such
as Exchange Trade Funds ("ETF's"). Assets refer to stock,
certificate of deposits or cash. ETF is a security that tracks an
index but has the flexibility of trading like a stock. ETF
represents a basket of stocks that reflect an index. The difference
is that an ETF isn't a mutual fund, it trades just like any other
company on a stock exchange. Available contracts may be puts,
calls, long or short. Data storage 207 may also include market data
information, expert opinion and financial quotes.
[0053] From those eligible contracts identified by the identifier
205, the selection processor 203 selects, again based on the
received instructions, particular component contracts for inclusion
in a composite contract, also referred to herein as a second level
selection. Although performed in separate processes, the first and
second level selections may also be performed as a single selection
process. Data representing the available contracts is stored on the
data storage 207 that is coupled with the identifier 205.
[0054] As discussed above, the instructions include information
such as the selection criteria for choosing which component
contracts, based on their attributes, should be included in the
composite contracts. The selection of component contracts by the
selection processor 203 and identifier 205 is accomplished by using
one or more selection algorithms. The selection algorithms include
computational or decisional processing routines which generally
accept the instruction provided criteria and the parameters of the
contracts undergoing evaluation as inputs to one or more functions,
the output of which determines the selection of the given contract.
The functions may include Boolean, numeric or alphanumeric based
computations or combinations thereof. The selection algorithms may
factor in the user defined criteria provided in the instructions or
the algorithm may operate autonomously to select component
contracts or a combination thereof, as described above. First level
selections may use a selection algorithm different from the
selection algorithm used for second level selections, or the
algorithms may be the same. Where the same selection algorithm is
used for both the first and second level selections, the criteria
for each algorithm may be the same or different.
[0055] In one embodiment, selection processor 203 and identifier
205 are implemented in software as part of the composite contract
generator 103 described above. For example, the selection processor
203 and identifier 205 may be processing application programs.
Alternatively, the selection processor 203 and/or identifier 205
may be implemented as hardware integrated with the hardware and/or
software that form the composite contract generator 103.
Preferably, this hardware includes microprocessors,
micro-controllers, or digital signal processors, having an
electronic erasable program read only memory (EEPROM) or Flash
memory, static random access memory (RAM), a clocking/timing
circuit, or any typical processor utilized in an electrical device.
In another embodiment, the selection processor 203 and/or
identifier may be implemented as a combination software algorithm
and hardware device.
[0056] The selection algorithms work with the data storage 207,
which stores data which describes available component contracts and
other factors, to determine the set of eligible component contracts
from which to generate the composite contract.
[0057] Examples of selection algorithms for use with first level
selections include algorithms based on current or average trading
price, expiration, contract type, underlying commodity type, price
volatility, user preference, or combinations thereof. These
criteria may be compared against corresponding parameters of the
available contracts being evaluated using a Boolean based equality
or threshold type function or a numeric based computation, or
combinations thereof. It will be appreciated that other selection
algorithms, now or later developed, may also be used, including
selection algorithms listed below for second level selection,
including selection algorithms based on factors such as weather
conditions, market indexes, etc., or combinations thereof. For
example, the selection algorithm may accept the type of contract
and minimum trading price for inclusion in the eligible contract
subset, such as gold futures with a minimum trading price of $350.
The selection algorithm will review all available contracts and
select all gold futures contracts based on matching of the
underlying commodity type. Next the selection algorithm performs a
combined Boolean/numeric computation to determine which gold
contracts are trading at a price equal to or greater than the
specified threshold value of $350. The resultant subset of
contracts then meets the specified criteria.
[0058] Examples of selection algorithms for use with second level
selections include those algorithms listed above for first level
selection plus a weighting based algorithm which selects contracts
from the eligible component contracts for inclusion in the
composite contract based on a weighting value assigned to each
eligible contract, a market participation algorithm which selects
contracts from the eligible component contracts based on votes from
market participants, a product mix algorithm which selects diverse
component contracts from the eligible component contracts based on
volatility, investment or a categorized grouping and an aggregate
pooling algorithm which selects contracts from the eligible
component contracts based on a common grouping or categorization
such as a large capitalization, small capitalization, currency and
agricultural products. The selection processor 203 may implement
one or more of these selection algorithms. As explained above for
the selection algorithms for first level selection, the selection
algorithms used in the second level selection may include Boolean
based equality or threshold type functions or numeric based
computations, or combinations thereof, and further the first and
second level selections may be combined using a combined selection
algorithm which both determines the eligible component contracts
and those contracts which will ultimately be included in the
composite contract.
[0059] A weighting algorithm includes an index-based function based
on a market capitalization of the eligible components or a futures
based index. As explained above, eligible component contracts
include financial instruments, such as stocks, bonds, agricultural
futures contracts that are available for trading. In one
embodiment, the eligible components which have a greater share or
higher trading volumes are assigned a higher weighting value. Those
eligible components whose weighting value meets or exceeds a
specified threshold are then selected for inclusion in the
resultant composite contract. Preferably, the post processing
computation of the parameters, such as the price, of the composite
contract, the weighting values of the included component contracts
are utilized to adjust the influence of the particular component
contract's attributes upon the computed composite contract
parameters.
[0060] A market participation selection algorithm is used to select
the eligible components in the composite contract based on a voting
process, which will be described in more detail in conjunction with
FIG. 6. In the preferred process, the market participants may cast
votes for the component contracts that they want included in the
composite contract. Preferably, as described above, during post
processing computation of the parameters, such as the price, of the
composite contract, the number of votes received by or the number
of market participants who voted for the included component
contracts may be utilized to adjust the influence of the particular
component contract's attributes upon the computed composite
contract parameters. For example, if a first market participant
casts 7 votes for a particular component and a second market
participant casts 1 vote for the same particular component, those
votes and the votes from other market participants will be tallied.
If that particular component is ultimately included in the
composite contract, the first market participant may be obligated
to participate in the trading of the composite contract at a higher
level than the second market participant.
[0061] A product mix algorithm selects component contracts based
upon a desired level of diversification among the component
contracts of the composite contract. Such diversification may be
based on volatility, investment group and/or a categorized group.
The aggregate pooling selection algorithm provides a selection of
eligible components based on a categorization or grouping of the
underlying component contracts, such as a large capitalization,
small capitalization, currency and/or agricultural products.
[0062] Other selection algorithms include algorithms based on a
calendar or time function, such as selecting contracts with
particular maturity dates, creation dates, trading duration, etc,
algorithms based on the average, moving average, or weighted
average of a particular attribute of the contract, algorithms based
on the most actively traded contracts, hot and cold indexes,
technical indicators, investment strategy of the user, or a price
settlement that may be set by a trader or a particular market
exchange. Further, the selection algorithms may select component
contracts with a high correlation or anti/low correlation (inverse
correlation) among each other, similar to mutual fund groupings,
contra fund, or balance funds. It will be appreciated that a
selection algorithm may implement a combination of the algorithms
described above.
[0063] Once component contracts are selected for inclusion in the
composite contract, post processing may be performed by the
selection processor 203 to determine the parameters of the
composite contract, such as the price or expiration. In determining
the parameters of the composite contract, the attributes of the
underlying component contracts may be taken into account. Further,
a parameterization algorithm may be used to automatically compute
the parameters of the composite contract based on the attributes of
the underlying component contracts. The parameterization algorithm
may also permit control, automated or user level, over the
influence of any one or more component contracts on the determined
parameters of the composite contract. For example, a scaling
contract algorithm may be provided which scales the values of the
attributes of the underlying component contracts based on a
notional value prior to computing the overall parameters of the
composite contract. This scaling may be based on the votes,
weighting values assigned to the component contracts during the
selection process, or other factors. The composite contract need
not have an integer number of each component.
[0064] The second interface 209 interfaces the composite contract
generator 103 with the trading engine 105. In one embodiment,
second interface 209 may be implemented as software that is
compatible with the communication link 102. For example the second
interface 209 may be implemented as an application program
interface (API) program compatible with communication link 102.
Alternatively, the second interface 209 may be implemented as a
hardware device with pre-processing functionality that is
compatible with the communication link 102. For example a network
interface, optical sensor interface or Ethernet interface
compatible with the communication link 102. In another embodiment,
second interface 209 may be implemented as a combination software
and hardware that is compatible with the communication link 102.
The second interface 209 transmits the completed composite contract
to trading engine 105 for trading via the communication link 102.
In one embodiment, the first and second interfaces 201, 209 may be
combined into a single interface to the communications link
102.
[0065] Once the composite contract has been generated and
transmitted to the trading engine by the second interface 209, the
terminal 101 is notified as such to alert the user(s) that the
composite contract is complete and available for trading. In one
embodiment, notifier 211 may be implemented as software that is
compatible with the communication link 102. For example the
notifier 211 may be implemented as an application program interface
(API) program compatible with communication link 102.
Alternatively, the notifier 211 may be implemented in hardware with
pre-processing functionality that is compatible with the
communication link 102. For example, the notifier 211 may include a
network interface, optical sensor interface or Ethernet interface
that is compatible with the communication link 102. In another
embodiment, notifier 211 may be implemented as a combination of
software and hardware that is compatible with the communication
link 102. Notifier 211, through a connection with the selection
processor 203, receives a transmission that trading is occurring at
the trading engine 105. The notification of trading is transmitted
from the notifier 211 through the communication link 102 to the
terminal 101. In one embodiment, the first and second interfaces
201, 209 may be combined with the notifier 211 as a single
interface with the communications link 102.
[0066] Referring to FIG. 1, in an alternative embodiment, the
composite contract generator 103 and trading engine 105 are coupled
with a composite contract terminator 107 by communications link
102. The composite contract terminator 107 is capable of
terminating trading of a particular one or more composite contracts
based on user or exchange specified criteria, such as particular
events or threshold levels. The terminator 107 removes composite
contracts from the market according to pre-defined or dynamic
criteria, as will be described below.
[0067] FIG. 3 illustrates a schematic diagram of one embodiment of
a composite contract terminator 107. The composite contract
terminator 107 receives information from the composite contract
generator 103 and the trading engine 105, then compares and
analyzes the information with any event or threshold level stored
in the contract terminator to determine if trading of the composite
contract should be terminated.
[0068] The composite contract terminator 107 includes a first
interface 301, a monitor processor 303 coupled with the first
interface 301, a terminator processor 305 coupled with the monitor
processor 303, a second interface 307 coupled with the terminator
processor 305 and a notifier 309 also coupled with the terminator
processor 305.
[0069] In one embodiment, first interface 301 may be implemented as
software that is compatible with the communication link 102. For
example the first interface 301 may be implemented as an
application program interface (API) program compatible with
communication link 102. Alternatively, the first interface 301 may
be implemented in hardware with pre-processing functionality that
is compatible with the communication link 102. For example, the
first interface 301 may include a network interface, optical sensor
interface or Ethernet interface that is compatible with
communication link 102. In another embodiment, first interface 301
may be implemented as a combination of software and hardware that
is compatible with the communication link 102. First interface 301
is operatively coupled with the monitor processor 303.
[0070] The first interface 301 receives information from the
selection processor 203 in composite contract generator 103
indicating criteria for terminating the composite contract
currently being submitted for trading to the trading engine. The
first interface 301 transmits the information to the monitoring
processor 303. In an alternate embodiment, the first interface 301
also receives information from data storage 207, wherein the first
interface 301 transmits this information to the monitor processor
303. This information from the data storage 207 may include market
data information, expert opinion, financial quotes, and/or other
information which can be utilized in the determination of whether
or not to terminate trading of a particular composite contract.
[0071] The monitor processor 303 monitors the trading engine 105 to
check for composite contracts currently being traded by the trading
engine 105. Monitor processor 303 is coupled with the trading
engine through the second interface 307. Monitor processor 303
transmits information received from the data storage 207 and the
selection processor 203 to the termination processor 305 along with
information regarding currently trading composite contracts.
[0072] In one embodiment, monitor processor 303 may be implemented
as a software algorithm. For example the monitor processor 303 may
be a processing application program. Alternatively, the monitor
processor 303 may be implemented as a hardware device or a
combination of hardware and software. The hardware device may
include a microprocessor, micro-controller, or digital signal
processor having an electronic erasable program read only memory
(EEPROM) or Flash memory, static random access memory (RAM), a
clocking/timing circuit, or any typical processor utilized in an
electrical device.
[0073] The termination processor 305 compares the information
received from the monitor processor 305 with respect to a
particular composite contract and the specified termination
criteria to determine if any of the specified criteria have been
met, such as the happening of certain event or the crossing of a
particular threshold. For example, if the expiration date of the
composite contract has been reached, then trading of the composite
contract should be terminated. If the termination processor 305
determines that the specified criteria have been met with respect
to the particular composite contract being traded, then the
termination processor 305 terminates the composite contract.
Termination of trading of a particular composite contract is
accomplished by transmitting a termination command to the trading
engine to suspend trading of the particular composite contract. In
one embodiment, the termination processor 305 further includes
storage (not shown) for storing the specified criteria for
terminating various composite contracts currently being traded but
whose criteria have not yet been met for termination.
[0074] In one embodiment, termination processor 305 may be
implemented as a software algorithm. For example, the termination
processor 305 may be implemented as a processing application
program. Alternatively, the termination processor 305 may be
implemented as a hardware device or a combination of hardware and
software. The hardware device may include be a microprocessor,
micro-controller, or digital signal processor having an electronic
erasable program read only memory (EEPROM) or Flash memory, static
random access memory (RAM), a clocking/timing circuit, or any
typical processor utilized in an electrical device.
[0075] Exemplary events, conditions or criterion wherein there is
no longer a need to allow trading of a composite contract, and
therefore trading should be terminated, include wherein a company
or industry does not exist, when one or more components of the
contract cease to be offered, when one or more market participants
vote to terminate the contract. Exemplary termination thresholds
include trading volume thresholds, volatility thresholds, dynamic
thresholds which change based on other criteria or any other type
of threshold level that has been reached by a component of the
composite contract or the composite contract itself. Particular
threshold evaluations may be dynamically performed over the a
particular window of time, range of price, or range of trading
volume, such as volume traded over a fixed period of time, or
increase or decrease of some value of the composite contract over a
fixed period of time. The period of time for such evaluations may
be a sliding window. If the threshold level is based on volume or
time the threshold level may require the volume to increase or
alternatively decrease over time for the trading to continue.
[0076] The second interface 307 couples the composite contract
terminator 107 with the trading engine 105 for the purposes of
monitoring current trading in composite contracts and transmitting
instructions to terminate one or more currently trading composite
contracts. In one embodiment, the second interface 307 may be
implemented as software that is compatible with the communication
link 102. For example the second interface 307 may be implemented
as an application program interface (API) program compatible with
communication link 102. Alternatively, the second interface 307 may
be implemented in hardware with pre-processing functionality that
is compatible with the communication link 102. For example a
network interface, optical sensor interface or Ethernet interface
that includes software that is compatible with communication link
102. In another embodiment, second interface 307 may be implemented
as a combination of software and hardware that is compatible with
the communication link 102. The second interface 307 is operatively
coupled with the termination processor 305 and the trading engine
105. The second interface 307 receives requests to obtain
information about currently trading composite contracts or
information regarding termination of a composite contract from the
termination processor 305, then transmits the requests or
information through communication link 102 to the trading engine
105.
[0077] Notifier 309, via a connection with the termination
processor 305, receives a notification that a termination of
trading of a composite contract has occurred. The notifier 309
transmits the notification of termination of the composite contract
to the terminal 101, to inform the user, and selection processor
203 of the composite contract generator 103 by utilizing the
communication link 102.
[0078] In one embodiment, notifier 309 may be implemented as
software that is compatible with the communication link 102. For
example the notifier 309 may be implemented as an application
program interface (API) program compatible with communication link
102. Alternatively, the notifier 309 may be implemented in hardware
with pre-processing functionality that is compatible with the
communication link 102. For example, the notifier 309 may include a
network interface, optical sensor interface or Ethernet interface
that is compatible with communication link 102. In another
embodiment, notifier 309 may be implemented as a combination of
software and hardware that is compatible with the communication
link 102.
[0079] It will be appreciated that within the composite contract
terminator 107, the first and second interfaces 301, 307, as well
as the notifier 309, may be combined into a single interface
compatible with the communications link 102.
[0080] FIG. 4 is a flow chart that depicts the generation of at
least one composite contract by the composite contract system 100.
This flow chart provides an example of how the composite contract
is generated by the composite contract system 100.
[0081] The composite contract generator 103 receives instructions
through first interface 201 to generate one or more composite
contracts, which in turn are transmitted to selection processor 203
(block 401). The instructions instruct the composite contract
generator 103 to generate at least one composite contract and
insert it into a trading engine 105 for trading. In one embodiment,
the instructions comprise a simple command to generate a composite
contract. In an alternative embodiment, the instructions include
criteria for generating the composite contract as described above.
In yet another alternative embodiment, the instructions are
generated by an automated process internal in the composite
contract generator 103 that initiates a generating process. This
automated process may be based on market activity, calendar events,
etc.
[0082] The instructions may be sent from terminal 101 or trading
engine 105 through the communication link 102 to the first
interface of the composite contract generator 103. In an
alternative embodiment, the instructions may be internally
generated at the terminal 101 or trading engine 105. In yet another
alternative embodiment, the composite contract generator 103 may
receive the instruction from a user at terminal 101. The user may
be a trader, a broker, or order entry person.
[0083] A pool of eligible components contracts selected from all
available component contracts is identified at the composite
contract generator 103 (block 403). The selection processor 203, as
stated above, includes a gathering device, i.e. identifier 205,
that brings together all of the eligible component contracts from
the available component contracts in data storage 207. In one
embodiment, eligible component contracts may be defined as those
component contracts existing at the time of the generation of the
composite contract. In an alternate embodiment, eligible component
contracts may be determined from available contracts based on
specified criteria, as described above, such as price, type of
financial instrument, volume, volatility etc.
[0084] The composite contract generator 103 next selects a set of
components contracts from the identified pool of eligible component
contracts to create the one or more composite contracts (block
405). More specifically, the selection processor 203 of the
composite contract generator 103 chooses the set of component
contracts to include in the composite contract(s). As was described
above, the selection processor 203 may use different selection
algorithms which are based on various factors to select the
component contracts.
[0085] The selected component contracts are then assembled into the
one or more composite futures contract by computing the parameters
of the composite contract and associating the composite contract
with the selected component contracts (block 407).
[0086] The composite contract is then made available to the trading
engine 105 for trading by the composite contract generator 103
(block 409). Selection processor 203, via the second interface 209,
then transmits the composite contract through the communications
link 102 to the trading engine 105. Trading engine 105 receives the
composite contract and makes the composite contract available to
traders for trading and receives trade instructions and executes
trades for the composite contract.
[0087] In one embodiment, the composite contract terminator 107 is
utilized when the trading engine 105 begins trading the composite
contract. The composite contract terminator 107 receives
information about the composite contract from the trading engine
105 and market information from data storage 207, as was describe
above. The termination processor 305 analyzes all the information
it receives with the information related to any event or threshold
level or other criteria being reached with respect to a composite
contract to decide if the composite contract should be terminated.
If the termination processor 305 of composite contract terminator
107 decides that the composite contract should be terminated, then
the composite contract terminator 107 instructs the trading engine
105 to terminate trading of the composite contract. Further, the
notifier 309 transmits a notification to terminal 101 and composite
contract generator 103 indicating that trading of the composite
contract has been terminated.
[0088] Once the composite contract has been made available for
trading, a notification of availability of trading the composite
contract is transmitted by the composite contract generator 103 to
the terminal 101 (block 411). The composite contract generator 103
utilizes notifier 211 and communication link 102 to transmit the
notification to terminal 101.
[0089] Once the composite contract has been generated, submitted to
the trading engine 105 and the terminal 101 has been notified as
such, the composite contract generator 103 resets to respond to the
next instruction.
[0090] FIG. 6 shows a flow chart depicting operation of a market
participation based selection algorithm for use with selection
block 405 of the flow chart depicted in FIG. 4. The disclosed
embodiments permit the actual traders/participants to decide the
composition of the composite contracts that they are trading.
Generally, the market participation based selection algorithm
allocates votes to various market participants which the market
participants can then use to vote for the component contracts that
they want included in the resultant composite contract. The
algorithm collects the votes and selects the appropriate component
contracts based on the vote tally. In one embodiment, the votes
cast by a particular market participant also represent a commitment
on the part of that participant to generate a prescribed minimum
trading volume. In one alternative embodiment, the higher volume
that a market participant is willing to commit to, the more votes
they are allocated. The market participation based selection
algorithm is implemented by the selection processor 203 as
described above. Wherein multiple selection algorithms are
available, the selection processor 203 first determines to select
the component contracts for the composite contract using the market
participation based selection algorithm (block 601). This
determination may be made based on criteria specified in the
composite contract generation instructions, described above. In one
embodiment, the selection processor 203 initiates the vote
allocation and bidding process wherein "ballots" are distributed to
the participants and their votes are collected, tabulated and used
in the selection process. There are several types of votes that may
be used by the market participants that include fixed votes for
component contracts, multi-vote for component contracts and vote
for composition.
[0091] A fixed voting system for component contracts is a system in
which each component of the composite contract is voted on by a
trader. For example, every trader is given five votes for five
different component contracts. The component contracts with the
most votes are pooled together in the composite contract. The
component contract may have five component contracts, less or more.
The selection of how many component contracts are included can be
based on a statistical distribution of votes. In an example, if 90%
of the votes are for two particular component contracts than the
composite contract includes only those two component contracts.
Alternatively, if six component contracts receive 95% of the votes,
then the composite contract includes those six component contracts.
A standard deviation or other means can be used in the selection of
the number of component contracts in the composite futures
contract.
[0092] A multi-vote system for component contracts allows a trader
or person to allocate his votes. For example, if trader 1 got 50
votes, trader 1 may vote all 50 times for a single (eligible)
component he really wants in the composite contract. Alternatively,
the trader can have 40 votes for the component he most wants and 10
for the second most desirable component.
[0093] A vote-for-composition system allows for several
compositions to be pre-selected and the market participants can
then vote for a particular pre-selected composite contract. The
pre-selected compositions may be manually or automatically
generated based on inputs from the voting market participants. A
single or multi-vote system may be combined with the
vote-for-composition system.
[0094] It will be appreciated that other voting systems may be
used, including hybrids of the above voting systems.
[0095] The votes may be allocated where each market participant
gets a predetermined number of votes, for example one vote per
market participant, as described above. Votes may also be allocated
in many different ways, such as allocation of votes based on past
trading volume of the composite contract, volume of past trading on
any United States of America or any financial exchange, market
participant's total interest, market participant's margin account
balance etc. (block 603).
[0096] In an alternate embodiment, the market participant's votes
obligates the market participant to trade a minimum amount of the
resulting composite contract. This allocation may be in lieu of or
in addition to the allocation of votes described above. For
example, if trader 1 commits to trading 50 contracts a day on
average and 2 traders commit to trading two contracts a day of the
composite contracts, then trader 1 would receive more votes based
on the greater commitment. The allocation may be performed before
the voting or as part of the voting process. That is, each market
participant may be able to cast as many votes as desired and by
casting the votes, obligates himself to a predetermined trading
volume based on the number of votes cast. The votes may also be
weighted by market participant membership rights and/or by the
market participant's commitment to trading the proposed composite
contract. The market participants may also determine or vote for
the number of component contracts in the contract and/or the
length/maturity date of the composite contract.
[0097] The votes of the market participants are then collected and
tallied to determine the component contracts of the composite
contract (block 605). In an alternate embodiment, there are two
votes, one for the composition of the composite contract and a
second vote for the weighting of the each of the selected component
contracts. The component contracts of the composite contracts are
then selected by the selection processor according to the votes and
the process continues at block 407 as shown in FIG. 4 (block
607).
[0098] FIG. 7 shows a flow chart depicting operation of a
weighting-based post processing algorithm for use with the
selection block of 405 of the flow chart depicted in FIG. 4. This
weighting-based algorithm is executed on the composite contract
after the component contracts have been selected in order to
determine the parameters of the composite contract. The selection
processor 203 receives an instruction to apply the weighting based
algorithm (block 701). The weighting function is then applied to
the component contracts of the composite contract (block 703). The
weighting function is provided to scale the composite contract such
that a notional value of the eligible component contracts is
different from the notional value of the composite contract. In
particular, the weighting function includes the use of a notional
value to diversify the contents and the amount of component
contracts in the composite contract. The notional value indicates
the total valued of a derivative's or financial instrument's
underlying assets. The weighting function represents various
percentages of component contracts that make up the composite
futures contract. Alternatively, the weighting function can be an
integer or non-integer value.
[0099] In an alternative embodiment, a system for computing the
fees charged in relation to a composite contract is provided.
Various fees are charged by exchanges, such as trading fees, e.g.
fees charged for placing an order, and clearing fees, e.g. fees
charged for providing clearing services for a particular order.
Fees are typically charged on a per contract traded basis. These
fees may also have associated cap values which limit the total
amount of fees charged to a trader or trading account. These caps
may be specified on a per commodity basis, i.e. after a certain
number of trades of a given commodity in a given time period, e.g.
day, week, month, year, etc., for which fees are charged,
subsequent trades in that same commodity are free or charged a
discounted fee. Alternatively, or in addition, fee caps may be
implemented for an individual or a trading account, e.g. after a
certain number of trades are executed for which fees are charged,
subsequent trades from that same individual or trading account are
executed for free or for a discounted fee.
[0100] In one embodiment, the exchange desires to encourage traders
to trade in composite contracts. One method of encouraging trades
in composite contracts is to charge fees which are lower than the
fees that would be incurred for separately trading the individual
component contracts. In this embodiment, the trading and/or
clearing fee of the composite contract is set at a value less than
the summation of such fees for the individual component contracts,
such as a percentage of the summation of component fees. In one
embodiment, the fees charged for the composite contract equal the
fees charged for a single component contract. In an alternative
embodiment, the fees for trading a composite are discounted by a
fixed amount from the equivalent fees charged for the component
contracts.
[0101] Composite contracts may incur additional fees such as an
origination fee charged to the trader who created the composite
contract.
[0102] Once the fees are charged, proper credit towards the related
fee caps must be given. In one embodiment, credit is awarded
towards each cap related to an underlying component contract. In an
alternative embodiment, additional credit is awarded towards one or
more of the fee caps related to an underlying component contract,
in order to further encourage trading of the composite
contract.
[0103] In one embodiment, the trading engine includes a fee
processor which monitors trades and charges appropriate fees to
traders and/or trading accounts. The fee processor includes a fee
calculator and a rate schedule. In one embodiment, the fee
processor is implemented as a software program and the rate
schedule is stored as a database in a memory or other storage
device. The fee calculator references the rate schedule to
determine the trading and/or clearing fee to be charged for a
particular order. The fee calculator further includes discount
logic which recognizes orders placed for composite contracts and
computes the appropriate fees as discussed above. The fee processor
is coupled with the accounting system of the exchange operating the
trading engine to and provides the fee calculations and appropriate
trade/trader identification information to the accounting system
for billing purposes.
[0104] It is intended that the foregoing detailed description be
regarded as illustrative rather than limiting and that it be
understood that it is the following claims, including all
equivalents, which are intended to define the scope of the
invention.
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