Cboe CEO resigns over personal relationships, stock gains 3%

investing.com:

By Jaiveer Shekhawat and Laura Matthews

(Reuters) -Cboe Global Markets CEO Edward Tilly has resigned after failing to disclose personal relationships with colleagues, the exchange operator said on Tuesday, bringing his decade of leadership of the company to an abrupt end.

Cboe said board member Fredric Tomczyk, 68 will replace him.

Tilly resigned after an investigation in late August by the board and outside independent counsel found that he did not disclose personal relationships with colleagues, the company said.

Cboe declined to say whether those relations happened while Tilly was CEO or prior to his tenure at the helm. The exchange operator also declined to say what sparked the investigation.

Tilly did not respond to LinkedIn messages seeking comment.

His resignation is the latest in a string of high-profile exits by CEOs whose personal conduct ran afoul of company policy.

«The Board of Directors determined that Tilly did not disclose personal relationships with colleagues, which violated Cboe's policies and stands in stark contrast to the company's values,» the company said in a statement.

Cboe shares closed up 2.7%, and are up 24% this year.

Andrew Bond, managing director and senior fintech analyst at Rosenblatt Securities, said he thought the change at the helm was prompting investors to speculate on a change of direction such as the company attracting interest from potential acquirers.

«I think that's why the stock is higher here,» said Bond.

Owen Lau, senior analyst at Oppenheimer & Co, also said such deal speculation was driving the stock. Lau, however, said hurdles would be Cboe's $16 billion market capitalization, driven by success in its business strategy and new products such as same-day options or