Chicago – The two giant financial institutions that have shaped Chicago and commodities trading since the 1800s announced Tuesday they are ending their crosstown rivalry and teaming up to form the world’s largest futures exchange.
In a deal forged by intensifying global competition for contracts based on stocks, currencies, commodities and interest rates, the Chicago Mercantile Exchange said it has agreed to purchase the Chicago Board of Trade for $8 billion.
The deal will combine the electronic and floor trading platforms of the Board of Trade, founded in 1848 for farmers to buy and sell grain, with the 108-year-old Merc, which has gone far beyond its trademark livestock contracts.
If the deal is approved as expected, the exchanges located six blocks apart in the downtown Loop will move to a single location at the Board of Trade.
