2022 in Review and the Road Ahead

Notwithstanding a macro-economic climate that was unfavorable to capital markets activity and an overall retreat of Canadian trading volumes, particularly in the retail segment, 2022 was another year of growth and progress for NEO: 

• The total number of listings grew by 45%, with the lion’s share going to ETFs where NEO now competes toe-to-toe with the incumbent exchange; 
• We significantly increased the number of corporate listings, where, building on our prior successes, we moved into several new sectors within the Innovation Economy; 
• We doubled the number of CDRs listed on NEO, which reached a combined market capitalization well in excess of $1 billion; 
• After experiencing some softness in trading market share over the first part of 2022 driven by a change in the fabric of Canadian trading activity, we resumed our growth trajectory in the latter part of the year; 
• From a market data perspective, user growth continued unabated with new market participants and investors seeking to access our data from all over the globe; and finally 
• NEO Connect, our private placement facility, enabled additional raises representing in aggregate over $0.5 billion and taking the overall amount raised through the platform since inception north of $2 billion.    

The seminal event of 2022 was NEO becoming part of Cboe Global Markets (“Cboe”), one of the largest global market operators in the world. 

With Cboe’s expertise and capabilities in operating global equity, derivatives and, most recently, digital asset markets, NEO now has access to a plethora of cutting-edge resources that will not only enable us to provide Canadian investors and capital-raisers with new opportunities and state-of-the-art solutions, but also allows us to expand our innovative offerings beyond Canadian borders.  

The initial wins for investors and capital-raisers following our acquisition are already starting to emerge: 

• The launch of Cboe One Canada, the first and only real-time market data solution that offers, at a fair cost, a complete and comprehensive view into the Canadian market with coverage of all Canadian stocks and exchange-traded products; 
• The first-ever dual ETF launch in the U.S and Canada of a new suite of funds, the Emerge EMPWR ETFs; and 
• By combining the trading solutions of NEO and MatchNow, the first holistic Canadian trading offering that addresses the needs of all types of investors and represented close to 14.2% of all volume traded at the end of last year.  

In addition to that: 

• We listed the world’s first single stock yield-focused ETFs with Purpose Investments; and 
• We were the first Canadian exchange to initiate a project seeking to find innovative solutions to finance the protection and promotion of biodiversity, together with the RBC Foundation and Innovation North.  

Innovation has always been a hallmark of NEO. Now, through Cboe, we are taking it to the next level. Being part of Cboe will also enable us to take the exchange for the Innovation Economy global. Stay tuned for our future announcements, and as always investors and capital-raisers will come first in all we do. 

With greater success also comes greater responsibility towards our community and our society overall, and we stepped it up again in 2022: 

We continued our support of: 

• The Prosperity Project, advancing the economic future of women in Canada; 
• The Sunnybrook Foundation, focusing on the funding of frontline care providers and critical COVID-19 research; 
• Hold’em for Life, funding critical cancer research; 
• ComKids, supporting youth-at-risk;  
• The WE Charity Foundation, funding education in Kenya; and 
• RBC Race for the Kids, connecting youth with mental health resources. 

We took it to the next level by: 

• Donating 100% of all revenue generated from trading on March 4th, 2022, to the Red Cross Ukraine Humanitarian Crisis Appeal, providing much-needed assistance to relief and recovery efforts and emergency preparedness in Ukraine; 
• Spearheading the inaugural Bay Street Rides FAR event in support of the Autism Science Foundation, with more than $1M raised across all Rides FAR locations; 
• Co-Chairing the B20 Women in Business Action Council to formulate actionable policy recommendations to the G20 focused on reducing the gender gap in business around the world; and 
• Becoming a lead Sponsor of Santa Comes to Bay Street, a charity that provides customized gifts and winter necessities to families living in shelters across the city. 

As in prior years, I am extremely proud of what we have achieved in 2022, and I am more excited than ever about what lies ahead, as part of the Cboe family. 

None of these achievements, and so many others that have gone unmentioned, would have been possible without you, our clients, our partners, our directors, and so many others who supported us over the years. Thank you! 

And, of course, a wholehearted thank you to the NEO team who, now together with all our new Cboe team members, have delivered once again despite the challenging macro-environment and the complexities that come with an integration. Being certified for a third consecutive year as a Great Place to Work demonstrates our exceptional, high-performance culture based on respect, collaboration, and inclusion.   

Yours, 

Jos Schmitt
President and CEO
NEO Exchange