i am a B-4 IDEM seat holder, and i personally watch the seat prices closely - and you are correct about the price swings since the CME deal. i am not sure if i am in the majority opinion in saying this, but i beleive the benefit of the CME deal has more to do with solidifying CBOT's future than anything else. i am a metals trader - and even though CME has a deal to trade NYMEX metals over globex, the merger now ensures that CME will not actively try to push volume towards COMEX. had the merger failed, they might have done so. now their committments will be towards retaining CBOT volume. all this means for CBOT B-4 IDEM seat holders is faith in having a bigger better company you can trust to retain volume. that's my take but i'm not sure others would agree
adam