The OIC (Options Industry Council) was created to educate investors as well as the general public about options. It was done to spur interest in trading options. With the growing popularity of options trading, it appears that the OIC is doing it’s job quite nicely. Check out the following article to learn more about the OIC.
The complex world of options trading can provide knowledgeable investors with quick profits, regular income, and protection against losses. Unfortunately, many investors are lured by the quick-profit potential and choose to merely dabble with these instruments without knowing what they’re doing. This often leads to substantial losses.
In order to mitigate this effect and better prepare investors for the ups and downs of options investing, the Options Clearing Committee (OCC) created and sponsors the Options Industry Council (OIC). The OIC seeks to educate investors about the risks, mechanics, and characteristics of options as well as specific strategies and how to use them.
Nature and Purpose
Unlike FINRA, the SEC, and other regulatory entities, the Options Industry Council is purely educational in nature. It has no official authority or function other than to teach the public about options and to educate brokers and investors on how they can be used most effectively.
The organization has a number of educational tools by which they accomplish this. They educate on virtually everything from basic options strategies like a covered call option to advanced options strategies like an iron condor. Moreover, much of their information is available free of charge.
Organizational Structure
Headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, the OIC is essentially a shell organization in a sense; there are only a few people working full-time for the Council itself, who are not also employees of one of its members.
OIC currently consists of ten executives responsible for each of its different educational platforms and functions. All educators are employees of either the OCC, one of the exchanges, or other members of the Council, and they receive no compensation from the OIC directly for the services they provide.
Chief Executives
The OIC is overseen by two chief executives:
Gina McFadden serves as both the President of the OIC and Executive Vice President of Industry Services. She is responsible for both corporate communications and the Investor and Internet Services Divisions. She also serves on a number of other boards and committees, including the OIC Roundtable, the STA Options Committee, the Equity Options Trading Committee, Women in Listed Derivatives, and the Futures Industry Association.
Ms. McFadden has completed the Securities Industry Institute’s Program at Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania. She holds a bachelor’s degree from Barat College in Illinois and went on to complete the Kellogg Management Institute Graduate Program at Northwestern University.
Mary Savoie serves as the Executive Director and is also First Vice President of the Industry Services division. Ms. Savoie is responsible for all corporate communications, public relations, and educational programs sponsored by the Council. She is also in charge of marketing for both the OIC and the OCC.
She received her bachelor’s degree in economics from Stanford University and also went through the Kellogg Management Institute Graduate Program there. She completed the Securities Industry Institute’s Program at Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania and holds an MBA in finance and marketing from Northwestern University.
History of the OIC
The OIC was created in 1992 through a joint venture of several partners in the securities industry. The Options Clearing Corporation (OCC) teamed up with the Chicago Board of Options Exchange (CBOE), the NYSE, AMEX, and two other exchanges to sponsor it. An opening celebration was held on September 30, 1992 in New York and was followed by a multimillion dollar educational campaign aimed at renewing public awareness of options trading.
OIC began producing a newsletter in 1994 known as the Blueprint and launched its website, Options Education, in 1996. The website was redesigned in 2000 and renamed 888 Options and an options call center was opened to service both professionals and the public. In 2007, the OIC launched a new website specifically for institutional traders. Several other organizations have joined the OIC since its inception, including the International Securities Exchange, the NASDAQ Options Markets, and BATS Options.
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