When the markets get frothy they can disappear. When the markets are frothy is exactly when consumers need them.

[That brings good news for all the options markets, including the ISE, he believes. Back when the four founders helped float the idea of the ISE,] we said options volume would double in two years. We were wrong. It doubled in six months, ... We think it will double again.

I'm happy that things are going up in the markets but when things get too bullish and too, I don't know if they're exuberant, but too optimistic, someone will find something between the lines on the Fed statement saying, 'but they said this, they cautioned here', maybe to have to be vigilant, so people might use that as an excuse to stay profits.

We delivered another strong performance in the first three months of 2006 as our average daily volume exceeded two million contracts for the second consecutive quarter. The double digit growth in our core options business fueled a 40% increase in net income once again reflecting the operating leverage that is inherent in our business. We also continued to post strong cash flow which we now share with our stockholders by virtue of the implementation of the dividend policy that we announced last year.

Our core business continues to expand at double-digit rates as equity options and other derivative products are increasingly embraced by investors as integral components of their investment and risk management strategies.

We dwarf them in size and complexity.