CME Group Hires Newmark Grubb Knight Frank and HDREP to Market NYMEX Headquarters

CME Group explores sale, lease-back options for iconic Manhattan tower

News provided by

May 29, 2013, 09:15 ET

NEW YORK, May 29, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- CME Group (NASDAQ: CME), the world's leading and most diverse derivatives marketplace, in partnership with its strategic global real estate advisor Holly Duran Real Estate Partners LLC (HDREP) of Chicago, has retained Newmark Grubb Knight Frank (NGKF) to explore the sale of the NYMEX Building, the headquarters to the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX). The 16-story, LEED-certified building is located at One North End Avenue overlooking the Hudson River immediately west of Brookfield Place (formerly the World Financial Center) and Goldman Sachs Tower.

The company will continue operation of its NYMEX trading floor in New York regardless of whether the NYMEX Building is sold. In the event of the sale, CME may lease back a portion of the building, including the trading floor. NGKF Vice Chairman Neil Goldmacher and HDREP's Holly Duran will investigate a sale-leaseback scenario as well as the possibility of relocating NYMEX to other properties in Lower Manhattan.

"CME Group remains committed to our floor based membership and open outcry trading services in New York, which continue to be a profitable part of our business and serve our customers well," said Jamie Parisi, CME Group Chief Financial Officer. "The sale of the NYMEX building will help us continue to reinvest in our core derivatives business, just as we did following the sale and lease-back of office space in the CBOT building in Chicago last year. Going forward, whether we decide to retain occupancy at One North End or relocate within Lower Manhattan, we are committed to updating our New York offices to reflect the innovation and quality of our CME Group offices around the world."

James D. Kuhn, NGKF President and head of the firm's Capital Markets group, and NGKF Capital Markets Senior Managing Director Jennifer Schwartzman, in partnership with HDREP Principal Holly Duran and Associate Jeff Mulder, will market the property for sale.

Duran said: "This is a modern, iconic office tower with extraordinary infrastructure and systems. Accordingly, we expect strong competitive bidding and a large pool of potential buyers, including potential end users."

Kuhn said: "This is an opportune time for CME Group to engage the market. With modest yields in other asset classes and benchmark interest rates in the low single digits, institutional investors are clamoring for the limited number of trophy office assets that become available for sale in Manhattan."

CME Group acquired the NYMEX Building, along with the exchange, in 2008. NYMEX has occupied the building since 1997. CME Group owns the building on a ground lease from New York's Battery Park City Authority that expires in June 2069.

About CME Group 
As the world's leading and most diverse derivatives marketplace, CME Group (www.cmegroup.com) is where the world comes to manage risk. CME Group exchanges offer the widest range of global benchmark products across all major asset classes, including futures and options based on interest rates, equity indexes, foreign exchange, energy, agricultural commodities, metals, weather and real estate. CME Group brings buyers and sellers together through its CME Globex^® electronic trading platform and its trading facilities in New York and Chicago. CME Group also operates CME Clearing, one of the world's leading central counterparty clearing providers, which offers clearing and settlement services across asset classes for exchange-traded contracts and over-the-counter derivatives transactions. These products and services ensure that businesses everywhere can substantially mitigate counterparty credit risk.

CME Group is a trademark of CME Group Inc. The Globe Logo, CME, Globex and Chicago Mercantile Exchange are trademarks of Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. CBOT and the Chicago Board of Trade are trademarks of the Board of Trade of the City of Chicago, Inc. NYMEX, New York Mercantile Exchange and ClearPort are registered trademarks of New York Mercantile Exchange, Inc. COMEX is a trademark of Commodity Exchange, Inc. KCBOT, KCBT and Kansas City Board of Trade are trademarks of The Board of Trade of Kansas City, Missouri, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Further information about CME Group (NASDAQ: CME) and its products can be found at www.cmegroup.com.

About Holly Duran Real Estate Partners
Based in Chicago, Holly Duran Real Estate Partners LLC (www.hdrealestate.com) is a global real estate strategy and services firm dedicated to providing innovative, cost-efficient solutions to commercial tenants. The firm has negotiated over 15 million square feet of office, industrial and data center leases in over 65 cities, 36 states and nine countries, managing transactions and lease portfolios for clients ranging from small professional firms to large multi-national organizations. HDREP provides a full scope of real estate services, including brokerage, strategic advisory, investment sales, acquisitions and dispositions, development, real estate finance and analysis, real estate valuation and project management. HDREP represents more futures-related business than any other real estate advisor in Chicago, in addition to clients in the financial, legal and entertainment industries. Clients include CME Group; Rosenthal Collins Group; TBA Global; Novation Companies, Inc.; The Heico Companies, LLC; Levy Family Partners; MC Squared Energy Services, LLC; FFastFill Inc.; ED&F Man Capital Markets Inc.; BuzzMedia, Washington Wealth Management, LLC; and Wind Point Partners.

About Newmark Grubb Knight Frank
Newmark Grubb Knight Frank (NGKF) is one of the world's leading commercial real estate advisory firms. Together with its affiliates and London-based partner Knight Frank, NGKF employs more than 11,000 professionals, operating from more than 340 offices in established and emerging property markets on five continents.

With roots dating back to 1929, NGKF's strong foundation makes it one of the most trusted names in commercial real estate. Its integrated services platform includes leasing advisory, global corporate services, investment sales and capital markets, consulting, program and project management, property and facilities management, and valuation services. A major force in the real estate marketplace, NGKF serves the local and global property requirements of tenants, landlords, investors and developers worldwide. For further information, visit www.ngkf.com.

NGKF is a part of BGC Partners, Inc. (NASDAQ: BGCP), a leading global brokerage company primarily servicing the wholesale financial and real estate markets. For further information, visit www.bgcpartners.com.

CME-G

SOURCE CME Group