CME Group To Offer Micro Bitcoin and Ethereum Options
Key Takeaways
The CME’s micro Bitcoin and Ethereum options are expected to launch on the 28th of this month.
These micro options seek to open the market to participants who prefer a much smaller sizing.
The CME already has micro Bitcoin and Ethereum futures contracts available for trading.
Share this article
The world’s largest futures and options exchange by daily volume has announced its plans to offer micro Bitcoin and micro Ether options starting March 28, 2022.
New Options Contracts at One-Tenth of their Standard Sizes
The Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) is set to launch trading of micro Bitcoin and micro Ethereum options contracts on Mar. 28th, pending regulatory evaluation.
According to a Tuesday press release published by CME Group, the new micro options contracts will be one-tenth of their respective underlying tokens in size and will cater to a wide range of market participants, including institutions and individual traders.
Rob Strebel, Head of Relationship management at DRW, said that the product would “help attract new investors and grow the crypto ecosystem.”
CME has long offered BTC futures and diversified its offering to include ETH futures in March 2021. The new product offers a new way for traders to get exposure to the two leading crypto assets.
Futures contracts are derivative instruments in which two participants engage in a deal to buy or sell a certain asset (usually a commodity), at a predetermined future date and price. They’re often used to hedge the price movement of the underlying asset to help prevent losses from unfavorable price changes.
Similarly, micro futures contracts work exactly like a regular futures contract; however, the CME Group applies one-tenth the multiplier of a standard contract.
These contracts will offer the opportunity to have long or short exposure to the underlying BTC or ETH. Contracts will expire monthly as well as weekly.
Tim McCourt, Global Head of Equity and FX Products at CME Group, disclosed:
“We have worked closely with clients and the broader industry to establish robust and liquid cryptocurrency futures and options markets at CME Group. At less than a year old, nearly 5.2 million combined Micro Bitcoin and Micro Ether futures contracts have changed hands.”
In February 2021, the CME Group announced the initial launch of derivative instruments based on the underlying value of a cryptocurrency, specifically ETH futures. Later that year, on Dec. 6th 2021, the exchange introduced trading of Micro ETH Futures.
Disclosure: At the time of writing, the author of this feature owned ETH and several other cryptocurrencies.
Share this article
The information on or accessed through this website is obtained from independent sources we believe to be accurate and reliable, but Decentral Media, Inc. makes no representation or warranty as to the timeliness, completeness, or accuracy of any information on or accessed through this website. Decentral Media, Inc. is not an investment advisor. We do not give personalized investment advice or other financial advice. The information on this website is subject to change without notice. Some or all of the information on this website may become outdated, or it may be or become incomplete or inaccurate. We may, but are not obligated to, update any outdated, incomplete, or inaccurate information.
You should never make an investment decision on an ICO, IEO, or other investment based on the information on this website, and you should never interpret or otherwise rely on any of the information on this website as investment advice. We strongly recommend that you consult a licensed investment advisor or other qualified financial professional if you are seeking investment advice on an ICO, IEO, or other investment. We do not accept compensation in any form for analyzing or reporting on any ICO, IEO, cryptocurrency, currency, tokenized sales, securities, or commodities.
See full terms and conditions.
NFT Express: Your on-ramp to the world of NFTs
At Tatum, we’ve already made it super easy to create your own NFTs on multiple blockchains without having to learn Solidity or create your own smart contracts. Anyone can deploy…
CME Bitcoin Options Volume Shows Early Market Traction
The CME’s options launch could channel an influx of institutional speculators to crypto. Crypto Derivatives on the Rise On Jan. 13, 2020, the CME announced the launch of its Bitcoin…
CME Group to Launch Ethereum Futures Product
The Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) has announced the launch of an Ethereum futures market, signaling institutional interest for ETH. Big News for Ethereum Fans While the cryptocurrency market is busy…
CME To Usher In Options On Bitcoin Futures Contracts
The CME Group has announced plans to begin offering trading in options on Bitcoin futures contracts from Q1 2020. While the product remains subject to regulatory approval, CME has taken…
