Veteran S&P pit trader describes leaving open outcry early, a cascading Globex loss he quietly paid, and how the move to screens shattered lives — including his father’s.

ELMHURST, IL (JLN) — February 19, 2026 — Veteran CME local Scott Kohl walked away from the S&P pit years before it closed, convinced electronic trading would overtake open outcry and determined to leave on his own terms rather than in desperation. Kohl said he set up screens in Chicago, the suburbs and Florida to keep trading, but never replicated the consistency he found on the floor. His faith in early electronic markets proved costly when a cascading error on Globex, compounded by frozen screens, a “hit bid and offer” function, and an absent risk desk, left him with a nearly $5 million loss on roughly 80,000 to 90,000 contracts, a setback he covered with a check the next day. The incident drew interest from major media outlets more for what it implied about the safety of the system as the exchange prepared to go public than for the size of the loss, he recalled, adding that he stayed quiet after an unrecorded warning from Merc leadership and now wishes he had forced a full forensic review.

ELMHURST, IL (JLN) — February 19, 2026 — Veteran CME local Scott Kohl walked away from the S&P pit years before it closed, convinced electronic trading would overtake open outcry and determined to leave on his own terms rather than in desperation. Kohl said he set up screens in Chicago, the suburbs and Florida to keep trading, but never replicated the consistency he found on the floor. His faith in early electronic markets proved costly when a cascading error on Globex, compounded by frozen screens, a “hit bid and offer” function, and an absent risk desk, left him with a nearly $5 million loss on roughly 80,000 to 90,000 contracts, a setback he covered with a check the next day. The incident drew interest from major media outlets more for what it implied about the safety of the system as the exchange prepared to go public than for the size of the loss, he recalled, adding that he stayed quiet after an unrecorded warning from Merc leadership and now wishes he had forced a full forensic review.