CBOE will begin trading Ether futures this year

CBOE Global Markets, owner of the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) and one of the world's largest holding companies, plans to launch Ethereum (ETH) futures by the end of 2018, Business Insider reports.

Since December last year, the company began selling Bitcoin futures on the New York Cryptocurrency Exchange, managed by the Winklevoss brothers. 

Futures are an agreement to buy and sell an asset on a specific future date at a specific price and allow investors to speculate on the price of BTC without necessarily having BTC in stock. BTC futures are not only traded for physical assets, they can also be purchased for financial assets.

Before the official launch of Ether futures, the exchange must obtain permission from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), which is currently reviewing the application. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in June recognized that Ethereum is not a security, allowing the company to create Ether futures. CBOE Global Markets President Chris Concannon said, “This announcement paves the way for us to create Ether futures, which we have been waiting for since the inception of Bitcoin futures.”

Last month, the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) released a report on average daily BTC futures volume, saying that volume increased 93 percent in the second quarter compared to the first quarter of 2018. CME also said that the number of open BTC futures contracts exceeded 2,400, up 58% from the first quarter.

CME began trading BTC futures on December 17 following the launch of BTC futures by the CBOE exchange. Later in July, CME CEO Terry Duffy said the company would not create any other futures in the near future due to the high volatility of cryptocurrencies.

According to cointelegraph.com