Frankfurt and Chicago
Frankfurt and Chicago are derivatives cities, with Eurex, the futures and options exchange of Deutsche Börse, in Frankfurt and CME Group with its exchanges CME, CBOT, NYMEX and COMEX in Chicago. Deutsche Börse also runs its US subsidiary Deutsche Boerse Systems from the Willis Tower in Chicago.
For a trading firm, broker or fintech from Chicago, Frankfurt is a route into Germany and the other member states of the European Union. Traders in the US can reach Eurex directly, because the CFTC has registered Eurex Deutschland as a foreign board of trade since October 2016. A firm that wants to serve clients in the EU still needs an EU license, and a German license from BaFin reaches every other member state.
Eurex and CME Group
The Chicago Mercantile Exchange was founded in 1898 and merged with the Chicago Board of Trade on 12 July 2007 to form CME Group. In August 2008 CME Group added NYMEX and COMEX in New York, and today it runs the four exchanges from Chicago. Eurex was formed in 1998 when the German futures exchange DTB and the Swiss exchange SOFFEX merged, and it belongs to the Deutsche Börse Group in Eschborn near Frankfurt.
In February 2004 Eurex opened its own exchange in Chicago, called Eurex US, to compete with CBOT and CME in US Treasury futures. Eurex US won only a small share of that market, and in 2005 Man Group bought 70 percent of it and renamed it US Futures Exchange.
Trading on Eurex from the US
On 31 October 2016 the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission registered Eurex Deutschland as one of five foreign boards of trade with direct access from the United States. Proprietary traders in the US, registered futures commission merchants and commodity pool operators may therefore send orders straight into the trading system of Eurex.
Eurex Clearing, the clearing house of Eurex in Frankfurt, has been registered with the CFTC as a derivatives clearing organization since 1 February 2016. With the same decision the CFTC allowed Eurex Clearing to keep clearing interest rate swaps for the own accounts of its US clearing members.
From a US license to an EU license
A registration with the CFTC or the National Futures Association as a futures commission merchant or introducing broker gives no right to serve clients in the EU. A broker or trading firm from Chicago needs an investment firm license under MiFID II, which BaFin grants in Germany under the rules for investment firms. Crypto derivatives count as financial instruments under MiFID II and fall outside MiCA, so a broker for crypto derivatives needs the same investment firm license.
A BaFin license can be used across the EU through EU passporting. US banks that take deposits, lend or give guarantees to EU clients need an authorized EU branch from 11 January 2027 under Article 21c of Directive (EU) 2024/1619.
FIA Expo 2026 in Chicago
The Futures Industry Association holds FIA Expo 2026 from 2 to 4 November 2026 at the Sheraton Grand Chicago Riverwalk. FIA calls the Expo its most widely attended event and trade show, with sessions for traders, operations managers and the strategists who choose new trading technology.
Upcoming finance and fintech events in Frankfurt and Europe
Where is the Chicago office of Deutsche Börse?
Deutsche Börse Group lists its Chicago subsidiary Deutsche Boerse Systems, Inc. at Willis Tower, 233 South Wacker Drive, Suite 5420, Chicago. The Group runs the trading systems of Eurex and Xetra, and its headquarters are in Eschborn near Frankfurt.
What is the difference between Eurex and CME?
Eurex trades mainly euro products, such as futures on German government bonds like the Euro-Bund and options on the EURO STOXX 50 index. CME Group trades mainly dollar products, such as US Treasury futures, SOFR futures and the E-mini S&P 500, as well as energy and metals through NYMEX and COMEX.
Frankfurt contacts for teams from Chicago
Finance Loop is a professional network for emerging technologies in finance with more than 4,000 members, built in collaboration with Frankfurt Main Finance and TechQuartier. Finance Loop events in Frankfurt bring visitors from Chicago together with banks, asset managers, supervisors and fintechs in Germany.
A team from Chicago can join a Finance Loop delegation to events such as Frankfurt Digital Finance and get personal introductions from the Finance Loop team. Anyone working in finance, IT or AI can sign up for the free Network Membership.
Frankfurt, Chicago and Finance Loop
Finance Loop runs its events in Frankfurt, the home of Eurex and Eurex Clearing, and brings teams from Chicago together with banks, supervisors and fintechs there. Teams from Chicago can meet Finance Loop members at events in Frankfurt, Munich, Berlin and Hamburg.
Finance Loop is a professional network and has the goal of driving the institutional use of emerging technologies in finance, such as AI, tokenization, stablecoins, and DeFi. Finance Loop helps its members build skills and personal networks in these fields: Investment & Digital Assets, Payments & Digital Money, Digital Infrastructure & Sovereignty, and Risk & Compliance.