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13:01, 18-Dec-2017
Bitcoin hits bigger stage as exchange giant CME launches futures
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CME Group Inc, the world’s largest derivatives exchange operator, began trading bitcoin futures on Sunday, with the contract opening at what is currently its session high and dropping over six percent within the first half hour.
The CME bitcoin front-month futures opened at 20,650 US dollars and have so far traded as low as 19,290 US dollars and as high as 20,650 dollars in a session that extends into Monday.
The launch of bitcoin futures is viewed as a major step in the digital currency’s path toward legitimacy that should ease the entry of big institutional investors.
“We saw a nice open on light volume, but pretty uneventful so far. I do think we could certainly pick up in volume as Asia begins to open. This is a brand-new asset class and I think perhaps a lot of investors want to sit back and see how this plays out before dipping their toes in this market,” Spencer Bogart, partner at Blockchain Capital LLC, said shortly after trading began on Sunday.
Bitcoin was set up in 2008 by an individual or group calling itself Satoshi Nakamoto, and was the first digital currency to successfully use cryptography to keep transactions secure and hidden, making traditional financial regulation difficult if not impossible.
Last week, Chicago-based derivatives exchange Cboe Global Markets launched bitcoin futures, which saw the price surge nearly 20 percent in its debut.
Some investors believe the CME bitcoin futures could attract more institutional demand because the final settlement price is culled from multiple exchanges.
Source(s): Reuters