What is Cboe Australia (CXA Stock Exchange)?

Key highlights:

• Cboe provides investors with the infrastructure and tradable products to access financial markets.

• Various asset classes are available across local and global investment options.

• Their trading system has changed the Australian investment market.

What is Cboe Australia (formerly known as Chi-X)?

Cboe Australia is a stock trading exchange that aims to provide cutting-edge trading opportunities and cost-effective access to the Australian listed investment market. Since its founding in 2011, Cboe has grown to hold up to 20% of the market share and averages around $3.8b in cash equities trading per day. The exchange executes investors' transactions and registers shares to their specified Holder Identification Number (HIN).

Many of the same stocks are available on the ASX. There are additional warrants, futures trading systems and a foreign exchange market platform. The Cboe Australia Funds market has exchange traded funds (ETFs) and quoted managed funds (QMFs) that are either actively managed or hold only single assets.

What is the history of Chi-X and Cboe Australia?

Cboe Global Markets is a leading provider of market infrastructure and tradable products. The company is one of the largest operators in the U.S., owning the Chicago Board Options Exchange and BATS Global Markets. They acquired Chi-X Asia Pacific Holdings in June 2021, which held the former Chi-X Australia Pty Ltd as a subsidiary. After a period of integration, Chi-X was formally rebranded as Cboe Australia Pty Ltd in February 2022.

What markets can I trade on Cboe Australia (CXA stock exchange)?

The platform hosts all of the approximately 2,100 ASX-listed companies and just over 230 ETFs. Aside from Australian shares, Cboe has a suite of seven other global equity exchanges, four options exchanges, one futures exchange and a forex (foreign exchange) marketplace. The names Cboe and CXA are often used interchangeably, although CXA often also refers to their index for large Australian companies.

International index futures include those from the S&P500, Nasdaq, Dow Jones Industrial Average, Hang Seng and Nikkei, a similar offering to the ASX. A number of warrants and funds are exclusive to the Cboe platform. One of their most recent additions has been exchange traded corporate bonds, that give investors effective access to local fixed income opportunities.

Previously U.S. shares were available through Transferable Custody Receipts (TraCRs) that could be bought like regular Australian shares. These global investment opportunities were withdrawn earlier in 2022 as they were no longer commercially viable for the issuer.

Can I trade on the CXA stock exchange with Stake?

Stake orders for Australian ETFs and shares can be sent to the CXA as our partner broker FinClear is connected to the exchange. They are executed according to FinClear's Best Execution Policy. Most online investing platforms have relationships with both the ASX and CXA. Generally, the one offering the best price for an order is automatically chosen and there's no need for investors to decide where the trade should be executed.

What is the difference between Cboe Australia vs ASX?

Both Cboe Australia (formerly Chi-X) and ASX are ASIC-regulated market operators, offering tradable products focused on the Australian equity market. ASX oversees clearing and settlement, while Chi-X provides an alternative trading venue. ASX emerged from the consolidation of six independent stock exchanges in 1987, while Chi-X entered in 2011. In contrast, the US has numerous exchanges in its financial market.

Although the sector is open to competition the ASX still has a monopoly on clearing and settlement services. This means they’re responsible for double-checking details of trades, as well as the final transfer of securities and funds. Although the stocks available on both platforms can be sold again through either exchange. Shares will automatically settle on your HIN if you trade with a CHESS-sponsored investing platform or directly with share registries in either scenario.

Cboe Australia trading hours

Cboe allows for continuous trading of all products between 10:00am and 4:13pm Sydney time, Monday to Friday. Warrants open a little earlier at 9:50am, ahead of indices, currencies and commodities. Whilst the system has technical connectivity earlier and later during the day, there's a lot of limitations on whether orders can be entered, modified or cancelled. Unlike the ASX, Cboe doesn't ‘match’ orders or have auctions outside of its daytime trading hours.

There's a small window to enter market-on-close (MOC) orders that close on the closing price between 4:12pm to 4:20pm. One thing to keep in mind is that all orders that aren't executed will be automatically removed at the end of the day. This could mean extra work for investors, but the Cboe potentially has a smaller backlog to work through after closing than the ASX.

Cboe Australia FAQs

Are the trading fees any different between the ASX and CXA?

The trading fees depend on the type of product and specific type of trade. They can also be affected by the market volume of a stock on the platform. It is known that the ASX and CXA compete on price, with many market participants automatically choosing the one that offers the best price for a trade. These differences might be minor for a single execution, but can add up over time for frequent investments. 

What is the market share of CXA compared to the Australian Securities Exchange?

Cboe accounts for around 20% of Australia's total equity trading volume. The exact values fluctuate daily with trading volumes, having reached up to 23% as a high point. It's currently the only major alternative trading platform to the ASX. CXA has higher holdings in certain stocks, which can mean more cost-efficient product offerings. 

What is the Cboe Australia equivalent of the S&P/ASX 200 index?

The Cboe Australia 200 Index (CXA 200 Index) measures the performance of the largest 200 companies in Australia by market cap. It's similar to the S&P/ASX200 and these companies usually account for about 80% of the total Australian share market.

Megan Stals

Market Analyst

Megan is a markets analyst at Stake, with 7 years of experience in the world of investing and a Master’s degree in Business and Economics from The University of Sydney Business School. Megan has extensive knowledge of the UK markets, working as an analyst at ARCH Emerging Markets - a UK investment advisory platform focused on private equity. Previously she also worked as an analyst at Australian robo advisor Stockspot, where she researched ASX listed equities and helped construct the company's portfolios.