NYSE American Binary KPI Options: Your Earnings Metric Becomes a Bet

NYSE American Wants to List Options on Public Company KPIs

NYSE American has asked the SEC for permission to list binary KPI options. These are cash-settled contracts that pay out based on whether a public company's disclosed key performance indicator meets or exceeds a set threshold. The SEC issued the notice of filing on September 15, 2026 as Release No. 34-106367, File No. SR-NYSEAMER-2026-82, and it was published in the Federal Register on September 18, 2026.

But here is the part the headlines are missing. The notice states that the NYSE American proposal is identical to Cboe's pending filing, SR-CBOE-2026-061. NYSE Arca and MEMX have filed their own versions. The real decision point is not this filing. It is October 13, 2026, the date by which the SEC must act on Cboe's version.

What a Binary KPI Option Actually Is

Under the proposal, a binary KPI option is a cash-settled option on an issuer's key performance indicator. The exercise settlement amount is fixed when the option is created. Settlement turns on where the KPI disclosed in the issuer's earnings-related SEC filing lands relative to the exercise price. A binary KPI call pays the fixed amount if the reported KPI is at or above the exercise price. A binary KPI put pays the fixed amount if the reported KPI is below the exercise price. If the applicable condition is not met, the holder receives nothing.

The SEC release sets out the mechanics in a new Section 20 (Binary KPI Options), Rules 900KPI through 906KPI:

• Term. Series may expire up to 12 months after listing.
• Settlement. Value derives from the KPI as reported in the issuer's earnings-related filing.
• Position limits. Limits equal the underlying stock's limit per expiration, with 100 binary KPI option contracts counting as one standard option contract.

This is a Notice of Filing under Section 19(b)(1) of the Exchange Act and Rule 19b-4. It is a proposal only. The SEC has not approved the proposal. Its eligibility table identifies issuers and reference KPIs, including Coinbase revenue and trading-volume metrics; it does not specify which contracts would list first (SEC release, pp. 5-6).

The Rulemaking Queue: Why October 13 Matters More Than This Filing

Exchange rule filings run on statutory clocks, and this one sits behind another. Cboe filed SR-CBOE-2026-061 on June 30, 2026. The SEC issued notice of that filing as Release No. 34-105877 on July 10, 2026, and it was published at 91 FR 43418 on July 15, 2026. On August 26, 2026, the SEC designated a longer period for action on the Cboe filing and set October 13, 2026 as its deadline to approve, disapprove, or institute proceedings. That deadline applies to Cboe's proposal. It is not an approval date for the NYSE American filing.

NYSE Arca filed a parallel proposal, SR-NYSEARCA-2026-93, the same day as NYSE American, and the NYSE American notice cites a MEMX filing, SR-MEMX-2026-25, dated August 24, 2026. The pattern is familiar. Once one exchange opens a product category, competitors file copies so they are not locked out if approval comes.

Three outcomes on October 13

• Approval. The identical filings gain a clear path, and several venues could list competing products.
• Institution of proceedings. Formal review opens, the timeline extends, and the Commission signals substantive questions.
• Disapproval. The copies lose their footing, because they rest on the same design.

Public comment on the NYSE American filing runs for 21 days after Federal Register publication, according to the SEC filing page. That window is the cheapest point at which an affected company can put its views on the record.

Your Disclosure, Their Settlement Price

The distinction that matters is between a KPI as disclosure and a KPI as a reference asset. Today, a public company's operating metrics inform investors. Under this proposal, the same number, as reported in an earnings-related SEC filing, would decide whether an exchange-listed contract pays out. The issuer is not a party to the contract, yet its reporting becomes the settlement input.

That carries real consequences for CFOs and audit committees:

• Definition changes become market events. If a company revises how it calculates a metric, holders of an open series will care which definition controls settlement.
• Timing and corrections gain a new audience. A late filing or a corrected figure now affects contract holders, not just shareholders.
• Insider trading exposure reaches a new instrument. An employee who knows a KPI before release has a direct, binary way to trade on it. Review whether your insider trading policy addresses KPI-linked derivatives.

For broker-dealers and retail brokerage apps, the question is different. A fixed-payout, yes-or-no contract on a quarterly metric will draw scrutiny on options account approval, customer communications, and surveillance around earnings dates. Existing options procedures were not written with this product in mind.

What Your Leadership Team Should Decide Before October 13

The filing is not final law, which is exactly why the next two weeks are the cheapest time to act.

If you run a public company

First, inventory the KPIs you report in earnings filings. Any metric disclosed in an earnings-related SEC filing is a candidate reference value under the proposal.

Second, have your general counsel review your insider trading policy. Confirm that its definition of covered securities and derivatives reaches exchange-listed options on your own KPIs.

Third, decide whether to comment. The window is 21 days after Federal Register publication. A company that wants a voice in how its metrics are used should speak now.

If you run a broker-dealer or brokerage app

• Map where binary KPI options would sit in your options approval levels.
• Review customer disclosures and marketing approval for fixed-payout contracts.
• Name an owner for surveillance of trading around issuer earnings releases.

If you run an RIA

• Determine whether client accounts could reach these contracts through your custodians.
• Decide whether your investment policy permits them before a client asks.