The Options Industry Council Announces Expansion Of Educational Program For Financial Advisors

Chicago—April 7, 2009

The Options Industry Council (OIC) announced today a new effort to serve the educational needs of financial advisors with the launch of a dedicated advisor web portal and the addition of Eric S. Cott as Director of Financial Advisor Education.

Options are a powerful tool that financial advisors can use to build their business, particularly as more investors discover how this versatile product can help them protect capital, generate income, and successfully navigate different market conditions. Behind a secure login at OptionsEducation.org/advisor are trading tools, best practices, concepts and strategies, and an options refresher course designed for advisors so they can help their clients achieve their investment goals.

While educating financial advisors has always been a part of OIC’s mission, these new tools are a major expansion of that educational outreach, as is the retention of Eric Cott to assist with this effort. In this newly created consulting role, Mr. Cott will represent OIC at advisor-focused conferences, develop options curriculum and web content for the OIC Advisor website, and work with firms, associations and academic institutions to build and promote options education.

Mr. Cott has spent much of his career as a financial advisor, including four years as a producing branch manager. In addition, he has supported and directed financial advisors through different roles over the last 16 years. Most recently he was a Regional Vice President and Retirement Income Consultant at Sunlife Financial Distributors Inc. where he identified and cultivated new business, increasing assets and revenue share. Prior to that he was an Assistant Vice President at Merrill Lynch Pierce, Fenner & Smith, Inc. where he built and maintained a successful wealth management practice.

About OIC

OIC is an industry cooperative funded by the Boston Options Exchange, Chicago Board Options Exchange, International Securities Exchange, NASDAQ OMX PHLX, NASDAQ Options Market, NYSE Amex Options, NYSE Arca Options, and The Options Clearing Corporation. OIC was formed in 1992 to educate investors and their financial advisors about the benefits and risks of exchange-traded equity options. OIC's resources include: The Options Industry Services Help Desk at 1-888-OPTIONS, educational Web sites at www.optionseducation.org and www.OICoptions.com, evening seminars throughout the continental United States and Canada , instructional DVDs and educational literature and software.

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