Bats Global Markets

8050 Marshall Drive

Lenexa, KS 66214 USA

February 27, 2017

 

Dear Bats Customers, Issuers and Supporters,

Bats Global Markets, Inc. is expected to close its transaction with CBOE Holdings, Inc. tomorrow
and, as a result, this is the last official Bats CEO Newsletter. So, let me start with a simple thank
you. Thank you for your support. Thank you for your business. And thank you for your loyalty to
this little company from Kansas City since 2005.

Bats employees have created an amazing history the past 12 years, making it difficult to sum up
the company’s successes in a sentence or two. I could focus on our leadership positions as the #1
stock market in Europe and #2 stock market in the U.S. Or our ability to operate 11 markets
globally with only 300 employees, or our successful moves into the U.S. Options, ETF listings and
Global FX markets. And, of course, the many market-structure changes that Bats has advocated
for or introduced — all for the benefit of the markets and investors.

Instead I will leave it to John Lothian, the longtime market participant, observer and curator of
industry news, who put it simply — and best — on January 2, 2014, when he wrote a single, brief
sentence in his daily newsletter:

“Bats has changed the game.”

Yes, Bats has changed the game. That statement, as much as any, encapsulates what this company
and its employees have accomplished in the firm’s brief but unprecedented history, whether
creating a more competitive dynamic or paving the way for a market structure that benefits all
investors and market participants.

Founded in 2005 by Dave Cummings and 12 associates, including eventual CEO and current
Chairman Joe Ratterman, BATS Trading began as an electronic communications network (ECN) in
a North Kansas City storefront, surrounded by a bakery, a barber shop, a florist and a drug store.
The firm, largely comprised of innovative software engineers tasked with building the industry leading
Bats technology, was immediately a leading advocate for competition, working closely
with customers and other industry participants.

The company was aggressive from the beginning, both with its pricing and its unique marketing
campaign, led by frequent CEO emails (or “newsletters”) to the industry, advocating for changes to
the status quo and creatively critiquing the competition. I should know — as a competitor at
Nasdaq at the time, the Bats CEO newsletters made me laugh with references like “Bob the Bully”
and cringe when I was challenged to a public debate. Once, I even referred to these brilliant
marketing ploys (since adopted by some politicians) as “Hugo Chavez emails.”

In the past 12 years, the tone of the Bats CEO newsletters has certainly changed — first from Joe
and then hopefully from me — but the message hasn’t wavered since the company was founded: to

be aggressive, to be thought provoking, to find inefficiencies in the market and root them out for
the benefit of the markets and all investors.

Over the past decade or so, this Kansas City upstart — comprised of nearly 300 hard-working
people — has morphed well beyond what one could have imagined, creating a company valued at
more than $3 billion. Bats has become one of the world’s leading exchange operators, conducting
business and applying competitive pressure across three continents. No longer just a KC company,
we now have employees based in New York, London, Chicago, San Francisco, Singapore and Quito.

Bats’ many successes would not have been possible without the hard work and dedication of all
our associates and the vision of my predecessor, Joe, with his ability to select and support an
unbelievably talented team. Under his leadership from 2007-2015, the company completed the
transformative Chi-X Europe (2011) and Direct Edge (2014) transactions, moved into U.S. Options
and Global FX and, just as importantly, further optimized the highly efficient, team-oriented Bats
culture.

Of course, the pending combination with CBOE doesn’t spell the end of the journey for Bats but is
instead a major milestone in our mission of Making Markets Better by leveraging great technology
and a unique spirit of innovation. As we prepare to become part of CBOE, working alongside CEO
Ed Tilly and his great team, we are excited for the future of Bats and the opportunity to make an
even bigger impact on global markets.

As a customer, issuer, supporter, vendor or competitor, you can expect to see Bats’ same vibrant
competitive forces — and many familiar faces — as we join with CBOE. More than anything, we
look forward to continuing our work alongside you as our partner as we move into this next phase
of Bats history.

Thank you, again, for your enduring support.

Sincerely,
Chris Concannon
CEO
Bats Global Markets
P.S. Because this is the final Bats CEO newsletter, it would be a shame to not make some marketstructure
predictions. Here are a few of my thoughts for the coming year:
Reg NMS – Will come under serious review in 2017;
IPOs – 2017 should be a banner year;
Tick Pilot – More data will simply reveal the same as the early data;
Mifid II – It won’t be delayed again but may see some last-minute adjustments;
FX Global Code – The difficulty will be the adherence; and
Volcker Rule – The market-maker exemption gets bigger.
**This shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy, nor shall there be
any sale of these securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale
would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state
or jurisdiction.**