On June 14, 2007, the New York Times DealBook reported the latest development in the Exchange War between the IntercontinentalExchange, Inc. (ICE) and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange Holdings (CME) over a property they both want:
As two of the Chicago Board of Trade’s rivals continue duking it out over the exchange, its board of directors spoke up on Thursday: it favors the Chicago Mercantile Exchange.
But the IntercontinentalExchange seems to want the Chicago Board of Trade (BOT) badly. Dow Jones MarketWatch reported late Tuesday June 12 that the company had enhanced its offer. It now represents a 10.2% premium over Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) bid. And,
ICE also said it plans to file a preliminary proxy statement to oppose the proposed acquisition of CBOT Holdings by the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) and solicit votes against the proposed CBOT/CME merger at the CBOT shareholders meeting scheduled for July 9.
Given the reported challenges faced by ICE in shifting CBOT's action to its New York Board of Trade platform, as well as the premium it has already offered to pay for the property, one wonders what's behind this ambitious strategy. CEO Jeffrey Sprecher says "It's a growth play." Is he right?
The Three Parts Of A Dollar
To understand the motives behind an audacious strategic move like Mr. Sprecher's, it's useful to start with the enterprise marketing concept of "the three parts of a dollar." Why? Because it divides the sales dollar up into three mutually exclusive and exhaustive parts that define, with the use of financial accounting data, the company's underlying business model.
Cost Of Goods Sold
The "cost of goods sold" at the Chicago Board of Trade in 2006 was 0.24%. Does this mean the company's gross margin is over 99%? Yes. Think of these three companies as retailers of risky financial products to
