James McNulty, president and chief executive of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME), could make at least $30m (€33m) from his share and stock options scheme if the US futures market is valued at the forecast $1bn when it goes ahead with its still highly sensitive flotation later this year.

McNulty has 576,000, or 1.9%, of the Class A shares in the CME and a further non-qualified share option scheme that rewards him for increasing the value of the futures market. If the CME's total value increases, the exercise of the option would give McNulty 2.5% of the increase above the CME's valuation on February 7, 2000 - the date he started - and 2.5% of any increase greater than 150% of the CME's value in the period.