The price of a seat at the Chicago Board Options Exchange has hit a record $2.5m (€1.86m), after the US options market moved a step closer to a public listing by hatching an agreement with the Intercontinental Exchange to simplify its membership structure.

The two derivatives markets said yesterday they have agreed to pay for exercise rights over the Chicago Board Options Exchange, which are held by members of another exchange. The agreement would make a stock market flotation of the CBOE more likely.