Chicago Exchange Seat Sells for Record

The Chicago Board Options Exchange, the largest U.S. stock-option market, sold a membership seat for a record amount Wednesday, a day after the exchange’s parent agreed to be acquired by the owner of a rival operation.

The $1.51-million sale of the rights to trade on the market topped Tuesday’s sale of four seats for $1.5 million per seat, the exchange said in a statement. The previous record of $1.4 million was set Aug. 15.

The Chicago Mercantile Exchange on Tuesday agreed to buy the Chicago Board of Trade for about $8 billion, creating the largest exchange for futures contracts on stocks, bonds, currencies and commodities.

The Chicago Board Options Exchange plans to reorganize and sell shares to the public, a strategy that the Board of Trade followed last year.