The group claimed to have noticed an increase in open interest and the trading volume for micro-sized ETH futures options as well as ETH futures, perhaps in anticipation of the Merge.
significant derivatives market For its Ether (ETH) futures products, Chicago Mercantile Exchange Group plans to introduce options trading.
The CME Group announced on Thursday that it intends to introduce options contracts for its Ether futures, with a contract size of 50 ETH. This move is subject to regulatory review. The firm previously introduced micro-sized Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether options in March 2022, BTC options trading products in January 2020, and a BTC futures contract in December 2017. The futures options are anticipated to begin trading on September 12.
In announcing the ETH futures product, Tim McCourt, global head of equity and FX products at CME Group, referred to the Ethereum blockchain’s impending switch to proof-of-stake, also known as the Merge. ETH futures and micro-sized ETH futures options had seen an increase in trading volume and open interest, McCourt claimed, possibly in anticipation of the Merge.
McCourt noted that “we […] have seen increased activity in our September and December Micro Ether options, which may also indicate that participants are hedging risk around the proposed date of the merge.” The September and December contracts have 778 percent of the open interest in Micro Ether options.
Looking for a new opportunity to add the flexibility of options to your cryptocurrency portfolio? Meet CME Group’s Ether options, launching Sept. 12. https://t.co/yHc3s6oL9h pic.twitter.com/wlKTGNyE5K
— CME Group (@CMEGroup) August 18, 2022
The CME Group reported that between June and July, the average daily trading volume of ETH futures increased by 7%, and the same volume of contracts for micro ETH futures increased by 41%. Prior to the Merge, which core developers anticipate to occur on September 15, there may be a significant volume of trading activity for ETH and investments linked to the cryptocurrency.
