Kansas City Board of Trade

A Century of Tradition

When the original members of the Kansas City Board of Trade met on the banks of the Missouri River to develop a more organized method of buying and selling grain they could not have foreseen the far-reaching impact of their vision.

More than a century later, more than 10 billion bushels of wheat would change hands on the exchange in one year, and grain producers and users around the globe would look to Kansas City for the fair price of hard red winter wheat, the primary ingredient in the world's bread.
Over time, the exchange's leadership would extend into other markets. Indeed, it was at the Kansas City Board of Trade that stock index futures, hailed as the most innovative financial instrument of the 1980s, were born.

The Kansas City Board of Trade was founded in 1856 by a group of Kansas City merchants. It served a function similar to a Chamber of Commerce. The Kansas City Board of Trade was formally chartered in 1876. Located on the northern border between Kansas and Missouri and the junction of two rivers, Kansas City is situated in one of the most productive wheat-growing regions of the world.

Early trading at the exchange was primarily in cash grains. Today, grain elevators, exporters, millers and producers use the exchange to protect their cash positions by buying or selling futures and options. Stock market investors also utilize KCBT products. Nonetheless, cash grain trading is still the core business of many of KCBT's members.Throughout its development, the Kansas City Board of Trade has prided itself on its Midwestern heritage. Integrity and service are the cornerstones upon which the Board of Trade was founded, and they remain as important today as then.