Find answers to the most frequently asked questions on how to register for and use CME Direct, our advanced platform for trading futures, options and blocks – all on one screen, from any device.
Agreements
- What is the CME Direct Market Data Fee Policy?
- What is the Information License Agreement (ILA)?
- Are customers required to sign an ILA?
- Who at my firm should sign the ILA and EULA?
- Does my firm have to sign both the ILA and the Exchange User License Agreement (EULA)?
- My firm has a Market Data License Agreement (MDLA) with CME Group. Can we leverage that agreement in lieu of signing the ILA?
- When does the ILA go into effect?
- What is the term of the ILA?
- If I am already paying for market data on another platform, do I still have to pay for market data on CME Direct?
- My firm is enrolled in the Pay Per User Program. Can our CME Direct market data fees be included in the program? Does the Pay Per User Program (PPU) apply?
- My firm is enrolled in the Asia Market Data Initiative (AMDI) Program. Can our CME Direct market data fees be included in the program?
- What is the first step in the licensing process?
Licensing and Company Mapping Form
- Why do I want to map my CME Direct companies?
- Where can I find more information regarding the Information License Agreement and related schedules?
Fee policies and waivers
- What is the standard monthly fee for market data?
- Will CME Direct Mobile be charged as an independent device for real-time market data?
- Is there an initial period where the data is fee waived?
- Will market data fees for a newly permissioned exchange be billed immediately?
- How is the volume waiver calculated?
- Will volume from both Globex and ClearPort venues count toward achieving the ADV threshold?
- Will all named parties on a CME Direct ClearPort deal be eligible for applied volume?
- If I trade CME Group markets through other applications, will I qualify for the waiver?
- If I only use Direct for ClearPort deal entry, will I be charged for market data?
- Will I be charged market data fees if I am permissioned for market data in CME Direct but do not log in for a full calendar month?
- A user at my firm was charged for market data this month but they did not log into CME Direct. Why?
- If I trade my client’s futures/options account, who receives the volume credit?
- How will the policy apply to CME Direct Administrator IDs?
- Are non-professional data fees or delayed market data fees available on CME Direct?
General
- Where can I find a list of all users on CME Direct for my company?
- How does my firm adjust market data permissions?
Payments and billing
- When will my first payment be due?
- When will I receive my first invoice for CME Direct charges?
- What will my invoice include?
- If I am already licensed with CME Group for other market data products, will my CME Direct market data charges be commingled with my other CME Group market data charges?
- Will tax be assessed on my CME Direct charges?
- A user at my firm was charged sales tax, but he/she is not located in the mentioned states. Why?
- Where can I find additional detail regarding subscribers on my invoice?
- How do I keep track of my firm’s CME direct subscribers’ ADV?
- Will CME Group bill customer firms directly?
- Can my clearing firm deduct my data fees directly from my trading account?
- How do I pull an invoice addendum?
- How should I build a purchase order?
- Where do I remit payment?
- Who do I call with questions on my invoice?
Agreements
1. What is the CME Direct Market Data Fee Policy?
Fees will be charged per standard market data policy, on a per device, per exchange, per month basis. Users can qualify for a market data fee waiver by meeting a volume threshold of 10 ADV on the CME Direct platform. The waiver applies only to the four CME Group exchanges: CME, CBOT, NYMEX and COMEX. Standard fees apply for Dubai Mercantile Exchange market data.
2. What is the Information License Agreement (ILA)?
The ILA encompasses the legal framework CME Group uses to license the consumption of market data and must be completed to gain access to CME Direct.
3. Are customers required to sign an ILA?
Yes, all firms will be required to complete an Information License Agreement (ILA) and related schedules to ensure continued market data access via CME Direct.
4. Who at my firm should sign the ILA and EULA?
An authorized representative within your organization can sign the agreements. Your organization may already have an ILA for other licensing with CME Group. Check with your market data procurement team.
5. Does my firm have to sign both the ILA and the Exchange User License Agreement (EULA)?
Yes, both agreements are required to gain access to CME Direct. The EULA is the software agreement, whereas the ILA is specific to the consumption of market data.
6. My firm has a Market Data License Agreement (MDLA) with CME Group. Can we leverage that agreement in lieu of signing the ILA?
No, the license to use market data on CME Direct is only available by signing the ILA.
7. When does the ILA go into effect?
The ILA goes into effect on the effective date stated on the agreement after both parties have signed.
8. What is the term of the ILA?
The term is the period from the effective date until the termination of the agreement. Either party may terminate the agreement on 30 days’ notice.
9. If I am already paying for market data on another platform, do I still have to pay for market data on CME Direct?
Yes, unless your company is enrolled in another CME Group market data program (see next two questions for further detail).
10. My firm is enrolled in the Pay Per User Program. Can our CME Direct market data fees be included in the program? Does the Pay Per User Program (PPU) apply?
Yes, firms who are in the Pay Per User Program (Netting) may include CME Direct.
11. My firm is enrolled in the Asia Market Data Initiative (AMDI) Program. Can our CME Direct market data fees be included in the program?
Yes, firms who are in the AMDI Program may include CME Direct.
12. What is the first step in the licensing process?
CME Group recommends entities that have registered for CME Direct under multiple entity names to submit a Company Mapping form as soon as possible. The form provides the opportunity to group multiple entity names and affiliates together under one master license streamlining the paperwork and billing.
An affiliate is defined as an entity that controls, is controlled by or is under common control with a party. Control means the ownership or control, directly or indirectly, of at least 50% or more of all of the voting shares (or other securities or rights) entitled to vote for the election of directors or other governing authority.
13. Why do I want to map my CME Direct companies?
Grouping associated entities will prevent multiple user IDs across companies from getting charged multiple times.
Your company will need to determine the Master Licensed Entity, which is the entity who will hold a licensing agreement with CME Group and any companies, including affiliates, who will be a party to this license.
14. Where can I find more information regarding the Information License Agreement and related schedules?
- ILA
- Schedule 1
- Schedule 1A
- This schedule refers to a service facilitator. Since distribution is not authorized for data received via CME Direct, a service facilitator is not applicable.
- This schedule refers to Schedule 5. Schedule 5 is the Distribution Schedule. Since CME Direct is a service provided by CME Group, and offers no rights for data distribution by the licensee, the Schedule 5 is not applicable in this Agreement.
Fee policies and waivers
15. What is the standard monthly fee for market data?
Fees will be charged on a per device basis for each exchange permissioned where the ADV threshold is not met:
$134.50, effective March 1, 2026*
*Fee schedule above is effective March 1, 2026. For current information regarding fees, visit our Real-Time Professional Fees page.
16. Will CME Direct Mobile be charged as an independent device for real-time market data?
No, CME Direct Mobile devices qualify as a waived device.
17. Is there an initial period where the data is fee waived?
Yes. The first granted exchanges automatically qualify in the first calendar quarter they are enabled and the following two quarters. In the third quarter after access to market data on the first exchange is permissioned, quarterly ADV evaluation begins.
18. Will market data fees for a newly permissioned exchange be billed immediately?
No, the newly added market data will qualify as waived for the balance of the quarter it is granted and then be billed from the following quarter, unless the ADV threshold qualifying subscribers for a fee waiver is met during the initial waived quarter.
19. How is the volume waiver calculated?
During an evaluation quarter, trading activity is assessed on each exchange independently. Users who achieve the ADV threshold will qualify for the waiver. The qualification applies to the bill for each month in the next calendar quarter.
Gulf Mercantile Exchange (GME) is not part of the waiver program and standard fees will apply regardless of volume.
20. Will volume from both Globex and ClearPort venues count toward achieving the ADV threshold?
Yes, volume from both Globex transactions and ClearPort deals entered via CME Direct will count towards ADV for the quarter.
21. Will all named parties on a CME Direct ClearPort deal be eligible for applied volume?
Yes, any named party on a CME ClearPort deal entered via CME Direct will benefit. This includes named brokers and traders who are not the submitters of the transaction.
22. If I trade CME Group markets through other applications, will I qualify for the waiver?
No, only trades submitted through CME Direct are eligible.
23. If I only use Direct for ClearPort deal entry, will I be charged for market data?
CME Direct can be used for deal entry to ClearPort without market data being permissioned. Market permission sets under the over-the-counter (OTC) venues are not billable.
24. Will I be charged market data fees if I am permissioned for market data in CME Direct but do not log in for a full calendar month?
Yes, if you are an enabled CME Direct user and permissioned for market data at any point during the month, you will be charged.
25. A user at my firm was charged for market data this month but they did not log into CME Direct. Why?
If you are an enabled CME Direct user and permissioned for market data at any point during the month, you will be charged for market data.
26. If I trade my client’s futures/options account, who receives the volume credit?
Only the user who enters the futures/options trade via CME Direct will benefit.
27. How will the policy apply to CME Direct Administrator IDs?
Firm administrators can complete all administrative tasks without the need for market data permissioned, including canceling and holding company Globex orders. If an administrator wants market data permissioned, the policy will waive fees for a single admin when at least one trading user at the firm has met the ADV threshold on a per exchange basis.
28. Are non-professional data fees or delayed market data fees available on CME Direct?
No, only real-time professional data fees are available on CME Direct.
General
29. Where can I find a list of all users on CME Direct for my company?
Firm administrators can see all entitled users for their firm in the User Admin view section of CME Direct. This list includes enabled and disabled users.
30. How does my firm adjust market data permissions?
Firm administrators can adjust market data permissions from the User Admin view in CME Direct. Additionally, users can be disabled from the User Admin view.
Payments and billing
31. When will my first payment be due?
Payment is due 30 days from the invoice date.
32. When will I receive my first invoice for CME Direct charges?
CME Group issues invoices and statements once a month with expected delivery on approximately the fourth or fifth business day.
33. What will my invoice include?
CME Group is invoicing market data fees in arrears. In the below example, real-time data access for the month of June 2024 will be invoiced with the July 2024 invoice date, based on ADV achieved in Q2 2024. The invoice will show the total number of units/CME Direct subscribers per firm for the service period/month of access. Where subscribers are not billed (due to meeting the ADV threshold or the subscriber being in the trial period), the Quantity column will show the number of subscribers against a unit cost of $0.00.
34. If I am already licensed with CME Group for other market data products, will my CME Direct market data charges be commingled with my other CME Group market data charges?.
Fees will apply based on whether Average Daily Volume (ADV) thresholds are met. For more information on the fee waiver qualifications, see questions below.
Yes, unless your firm has requested a separate billing account for CME Direct charges, you may see both CME Direct and other market data charges on the same invoice. To request a separate billing account please, see the contact information listed below.
35. Will tax be assessed on my CME Direct charges?
Taxes will be assessed on Arizona, Connecticut, Denver (CO), New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas and Washington.
36. A user at my firm was charged sales tax, but he/she is not located in the mentioned states. Why?
Sales tax is charged based on the location listed on a user’s CME Group Login ID. If you need to update your location, you can do this by updating the address associated with your CME Group Login ID.
37. Where can I find additional detail regarding subscribers on my invoice?
Information on the makeup of your invoice including user name, service month, address and fees can be located via your invoice addendum.
38. How do I keep track of my firm’s CME direct subscribers’ ADV?
We offer CME Direct firm admins access to two CME Direct ADV reports via our Enterprise Reporting Portal (EREP): a weekly report published on Mondays, showing subscribers’ ADV by DCM for the calendar quarter to date; a monthly report published on the first Monday of a new calendar quarter, showing subscribers’ ADV by DCM for the previous calendar quarter. Firm admins who want to gain access to these reports should contact marketdata@cmegroup.com.
39. Will CME Group bill customer firms directly?
Yes, CME Group will bill customer firms directly for real-time market data access on CME Direct.
40. Can my clearing firm deduct my data fees directly from my trading account?
No, firms will be invoiced by CME Group and are required to pay CME Group directly.
41. How do I pull an invoice addendum?
Visit the Data Services Platform and click on View Invoices, as shown below:
42. How should I build a purchase order?
You may generate your purchase order based on the number of users per exchange, but due to the nature of the variable amounts per invoice, it may be difficult to determine the exact fees per month.
43. Where do I remit payment?
Lock Box:
Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc.
Attn: Accounts Receivable
P.O. Box 73672
Chicago, IL 60673-7672
Wire Transfer:
JP Morgan Chase Bank
ABA: 021000021
Account #: 887294601
A/C Name: Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc.
Swift Code: CHASUS33
ACH Transfer:
JP Morgan Chase Bank
ACH Routing: 071000013
Account# 887294601
A/C Name: Chicago Mercantile Exchange
44. Who do I call with questions on my invoice?
Contact your Global Account Manager or email marketdata@cmegroup.com.
All examples in this report are hypothetical interpretations of situations and are used for explanation purposes only. The views in this report reflect solely those of the author and not necessarily those of CME Group or its affiliated institutions. This report and the information herein should not be considered legal advice, investment advice or the results of actual market experience. Where regulatory matters are summarized, they represent CME Group’s good faith understanding of the applicable requirements.
