The Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME), one of the world’s largest derivatives trading floors, continues to expand its offering of crypto-derivatives with the addition of a new product based on Ether (ETH).
The Chicago Mercantile Exchange announced on Tuesday that it plans to launch a 0.1 ETH micro-Ether futures contract, which will give institutional and retail traders access to a new type of Ether.
The new product will be the fourth cryptocurrency derivative product launched by CME and is expected to be released on December 6, 2021, pending regulatory approval.
The news comes as Ether hit a record high after the cryptocurrency hit an all-time high on Friday, reaching $4,460. At the time of writing, the second largest cryptocurrency by market cap is trading at $4,438, according to crypto-tracking website CoinGecko.
Tim McCourt, Head of Alternative Investment Products at CME Global Group, noted that the launch of the Ethereum Micro-Futures futures contract aims to attract more investors to the market with smaller investments.
“Since the launch of Ether futures in February, we have seen a steady increase in the liquidity of these contracts, particularly among institutional traders,” McCourt noted, adding that the price of Ethereum has “more than doubled” since these contracts were introduced. .
He added, “Micro Ether Futures will provide more choice and accuracy in how Ether futures are traded in a transparent, regulated and efficient manner at CME Group.”
Related: Ethereum shellers demand $5K ETH, this time confirmed by derivative data.
Micro Ether futures will join CME’s ever-growing portfolio of crypto derivatives, including Micro Bitcoin futures, which began trading in May 2021. The company has sold more than 2.7 million contracts so far, each contract valued at 0.1 BTC. The first original CME Bitcoin futures contract was launched on December 17, 2017.
