CME Group CEO Terry Duffy to Step Down

By Philip Seaworth • Wednesday, June 17 10:54 • Permanent Link

CME Group said Terry Duffy will step down as chief executive officer on March 1, 2027, and move into the role of executive chairman. Lynne Fitzpatrick, currently president and chief financial officer, will become CEO and join the board at that time.

Duffy has led CME Group for more than 25 years. During that period, the company said its average daily volume reached 28.1 million contracts last year, and its market capitalization topped $95 billion, more than 8,000% higher than when he took the company public in 2002.

The leadership change comes after a long stretch of expansion under Duffy. CME said it moved from floor-based trading to electronic trading, completed its merger with the Chicago Board of Trade in 2007, acquired NYMEX in 2008, bought NEX in 2018, formed a Google Cloud partnership in 2021 and launched a venture with FanDuel in 2025.

Duffy joined CME in 1980 as a runner in the lean hog pit, bought a seat in 1981 and founded TDA Trading that same year. He became chairman in 2002, executive chairman in 2006 and chairman and CEO in 2016.

Fitzpatrick has been with CME Group since 2006. She became managing director of corporate development and treasurer in 2017, deputy chief financial officer in 2022, chief financial officer in 2023 and president and CFO in 2024. The market has reacted to these announcements by moving the company's shares -3.46% to a price of $252.545. If you want to know more, read the company's complete 8-K report here.

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