CME Group’s cryptocurrency derivatives market experienced a remarkable surge in trading activity during April, achieving a new average daily volume (ADV) of 183,000 contracts, with a total notional value of $8.9 billion. This substantial increase, which the firm reported, signifies a 129% rise compared to April of the previous year, highlighting the growing institutional interest in cryptocurrency markets.
Leading the charge in this growth was Ether. The ADV for CME’s ether futures soared by 239%, reaching 14,000 contracts, while micro ether futures saw a significant uptick of 165%, hitting 63,000 contracts. Additionally, micro bitcoin futures followed closely with an impressive 115% increase, totaling 78,000 contracts.
It is important to note that the CME’s bitcoin and ether futures contracts boast a larger notional value of 5 BTC and 50 ETH, respectively. In contrast, micro contracts offer traders the benefit of more precise trading, representing just 0.1 of each cryptocurrency.
The exchange operator had previously reported record volumes in the cryptocurrency derivatives market for the first quarter of the year. For the month of April, its overall ADV reached a staggering 35.9 million contracts, marking a 36% year-over-year increase.
While Ether has underperformed in the broader cryptocurrency market lately, rising only 1.1% over the past 30 days, Bitcoin recorded a noteworthy uptick of 15.8%. The broader cryptocurrency market, as gauged by the CoinDesk 20 index, also saw a rise of 12.1% during that period.
As institutional engagement in the cryptocurrency market continues to strengthen, the surge in CME Group’s derivative trading activity reflects a growing confidence and a shift towards more sophisticated trading strategies among investors.
