CME and CBOT have announced plans to merge into CME Group Inc., a CME/Chicago Board of Trade Company. For more information for members, consult our Member Q&A. Membership at CME is more than a tradition. It is a business model that has allowed the Exchange to grow and flourish through the years, producing some of the most liquid markets in the world, which translate into strong shareholder value. Members are a loyal group of traders who are willing to take either side of a transaction, resulting in tighter spreads, greater liquidity, better prices and increased activity. The high level of liquidity and increased activity provide the motivation for a growing number of customers to come to CME to trade in its highly leveraged markets. If you’re a high volume trader at CME, purchasing a membership may be for you. Reduced Rates, Lower Fees Exchange members benefit substantially from reduced transaction fees when trading products within that member’s division. Higher volume traders further benefit from CME’s favorable membership fee structure, which may include fee caps and waivers in certain circumstances. For an example of fee savings, see below. Make Your Vote Count Your vote is important—and voting rights accompany a CME membership in the form of a Class B share. Class B shareholders have the opportunity to vote for directors who represent all of CME shareholders. Class B shareholders also have certain limited voting rights on issues directly affecting the trading floor (as described in  CME Holdings’ Charter ). Lease Privileges Need a break from the markets, but don’t want to give up your membership status? Members are permitted to lease their seat to another broker or trader, allowing the member to collect a monthly return on their leased seat. Lease rates and durations vary, so members are not subject to long-term lease commitments. See  Membership interests for lease or  lease prices. Membership Categories A variety of membership categories are available, each are available through purchase, lease, gift or bequest, or through family or firm transfer. CME offers four different types of memberships, representing its levels of trading access. CME membership – may execute trades in all CME listed contracts. International Monetary Market® (IMM) membership – may execute trades in foreign exchange, interest rates, and all IOM and GEM products (see below). Index and Option Market® (IOM) membership – may execute trades in index futures, random length lumber contracts and all options. Growth and Emerging Markets® (GEM) membership – may execute trades in various products, including those related to emerging market countries. If you have questions regarding benefits of membership, please contact Jule Mondschein, Supervisor of Membership Services at (312) 930-3485 or  jmondsch@cme.com or see individual membership pages more information.

For detailed examples of membership fee savings, please see the tables below.