CME Bitcoin Futures Options announced! CME Bitcoin Futures Options will be offered starting Q1 2020.
The Chicago based company first launched futures back in December 2017, at the height of the Bitcoin bull market. Rival CBOE also launched their futures product at the same time. The announcement yesterday by the CME indicates that they plan to launch Bitcoin options to provide clients with “additional tools for precision hedging and trading.” The launch is pending regulatory review.
Tim McCourt, CME Group global head of equity index and alternative investment products, said:
“Based on increasing client demand and robust growth in our Bitcoin futures markets, we believe the launch of options will provide our clients with additional flexibility to trade and hedge their bitcoin price risk. These new products are designed to help institutions and professional traders to manage spot market bitcoin exposure, as well as hedge Bitcoin futures positions in a regulated exchange environment.”
Since 2017, the CME has seen 20 successful futures expiration settlements with over 3,300 individual accounts trading the contracts. Close to 7,000 CME Bitcoin futures contracts are traded each day, the firm added.
In March of this year, the CBOE halted bitcoin futures products. This left the CME as the sole provider of the product in the United States.
Starting Monday, however, the CME will have a fierce competitor – Baker is slated to launch on Monday. Unlike the CME, Bakkt will offer physically settled products, meaning customers will receive actual bitcoin instead of the cash equivalent.
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