The Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME), a regulated financial marketplace, has made significant strides in the Bitcoin futures and perpetual futures market. According to data from Coinglass, CME’s notional open interest (OI), which refers to the US dollar value locked in active or open contracts, has surged to $3.54 billion.
This surge has propelled CME from fourth place a week ago to second place in the rankings of Bitcoin futures exchanges. Despite this impressive rise, Binance, an offshore unregulated exchange, continues to hold the top spot with a notional open interest of $3.83 billion, which is about 8% higher than CME.
However, it’s worth noting that for the first time, open interest in CME’s cash-settled futures contracts exceeded 100,000 BTC. Concurrently, CME’s share in the Bitcoin futures market increased to a record-breaking 25%.
The CME Outperformed Other Bitcoin Futures Exchanges
The Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) provides two types of Bitcoin futures contracts. The standard contract represents 5 Bitcoins, while the micro contract is a tenth of a Bitcoin. This variety in contract sizes accommodates a wide range of investors, from large-scale institutions to individual retail traders.
The increasing prominence of CME is often seen as an indication of institutional participation in the cryptocurrency market. This perspective is reinforced by the recent 27% increase in Bitcoin prices within this month. The surge in interest from institutional investors toward Bitcoin futures is further evidenced by the notable rise in futures-based Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs).
In October, Bitcoin experienced a significant increase in value, reaching a new one-year high of over $35,000. This surge was largely driven by institutional investors, who showed considerable interest in the cryptocurrency. Evidence of this can be seen in the substantial investment in CME futures, primarily through standard futures contracts.
In conclusion, the recent developments at CME highlight the growing influence of traditional financial institutions in the crypto space and indicate a bullish sentiment in the Bitcoin futures market.
