CME Group Secures $3.2 Billion in Financing from Bank of America and UBS to Finance...

CME Group Secures $3.2 Billion in Financing from Bank of America and UBS to
Finance Its Acquisition of NYMEX Holdings, Inc.
Standard & Poor's assigns its 'AA' long-term counterparty credit rating to CME
Group

CHICAGO, July 22 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- CME Group, the world's largest
and most diverse derivatives exchange, today announced it has obtained
committed financing to support its acquisition of NYMEX Holdings, Inc. The
committed financing takes the form of a $3.2 billion bridge financing facility
with Bank of America and UBS. In addition, Standard & Poor's has assigned CME
Group an "AA" rating on its long-term counterparty credit rating, and S&P and
Moody's reaffirmed the company's short-term credit ratings of A-1+ and P-1,
respectively. These ratings take into account the effects of the NYMEX
transaction.
"We are pleased to have secured committed bank financing for our important
NYMEX transaction," said CME Group Chief Financial Officer Jamie Parisi.
"Although general credit market conditions remain weak, our ability to secure
financing and receive such a strong credit rating demonstrates market support
of our acquisition as well as confidence in our overall business performance."
The financing from Bank of America and UBS will be equal with 50 percent
($1.6 billion) coming from each bank.
CME Group and NYMEX have previously announced that they expect their
pending transaction to close in the third quarter of 2008, subject to NYMEX
member and shareholder approval, CME Group shareholder approval and customary
closing conditions. NYMEX shareholders and members and CME Group shareholders
will vote on the transaction on August 18, 2008.
CME Group (www.cmegroup.com) is the world's largest and most diverse
derivatives exchange. Formed by the 2007 merger of the Chicago Mercantile
Exchange (CME) and the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT), CME Group serves the
risk management needs of customers around the globe. As an international
marketplace, CME Group brings buyers and sellers together on the CME Globex
electronic trading platform and on its trading floors. CME Group offers the
widest range of benchmark products available across all major asset classes,
including futures and options based on interest rates, equity indexes, foreign
exchange, agricultural commodities, and alternative investment products such
as weather and real estate. CME Group is traded NASDAQ under the symbol
"CME."
The Globe logo, CME, Chicago Mercantile Exchange, CME Group, Globex and E-
mini, are trademarks of Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. CBOT and Chicago
Board of Trade are trademarks of the Board of Trade of the City of Chicago.
Further information about CME Group and its products can be found at
www.cmegroup.com.
Important Merger Information
In connection with the merger transaction involving CME Group and NYMEX
Holdings, CME Group has filed a registration statement on Form S-4 with the
Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") on July 21, 2008 containing a final
joint proxy statement/prospectus. Investors and security holders are urged to
read the final prospectus/proxy statement and any other such documents, when
available, which will contain important information about the proposed
transaction. The final prospectus/proxy statement and other documents filed or
to be filed by CME Group with the SEC are or will be available free of charge
at the SEC's Web site ( http://www.sec.gov/ ) or from CME Group Inc.,
Attention: Shareholder Relations, 20 S. Wacker Drive, Chicago, Illinois 60606,
(312) 930-1000 or NYMEX Holdings, Inc., Attention: Investor Relations, at One
North End Avenue, World Financial Center, New York, New York 10282, (212) 299-
2000.
CME Group and NYMEX Holdings and their respective directors, executive
officers and other members of management and employees may be deemed to be
participants in the solicitation of proxies from CME Group and NYMEX Holdings
shareholders in respect of the proposed transaction. Information regarding CME
Group and NYMEX Holdings' directors and executive officers is available in
their respective proxy statements for their 2008 annual meeting of
stockholders. Additional information regarding the interests of such potential
participants is included in the joint proxy statement/prospectus and the other
relevant documents filed with the SEC when they become available. This
document shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer
to buy any securities, nor shall there be any sale of securities in any
jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior
to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such
jurisdiction. No offering of securities shall be made except by means of a
prospectus meeting the requirements of Section 10 of the Securities Act of
1933, as amended.

CME-G

SOURCE CME Group

Media, Allan Schoenberg, +1-312-930-8189, or news@cmegroup.com, Investors,
John Peschier, +1-312-930-8491