CME futures see record activities in Q2 2022 despite the bear market

The CME Group has reported increased activity in Q2 2022 for its Bitcoin and Ether derivatives contracts. These contracts demonstrate that professional traders were willing to access crypto assets during the ongoing bear market.

CME futures record increased activity

The average daily open interest on crypto futures products increased to 106,200 contracts during the year’s second quarter. It is the highest number of contracts on the platform.

The open interest in the futures markets depicts the total number of unsettled derivatives contracts. During the second quarter, the average daily volume for Bitcoin futures was 10,700 contracts, while Ethereum’s daily volumes were 6100 contracts.

During the June 21 week, the large open interest holders on the CME Group’s crypto products increased to 404. It demonstrated a high interest in the products from institutional and large cryptocurrency investors.

Despite the growing volatility of Bitcoin and Ethereum, the crypto futures products offered by the CME Group have become a platform where users can take advantage of the growing liquidity. The market volatility has also increased the platform volumes and triggered investors’ open interest growth.

The global head of equity and FX products at CME, Tim McCourt, commented on this development saying that the wide range of products offered by the platform, alongside the small-sized micro Bitcoin and micro Ether futures and options.

McCourt added that its futures and options provided increased flexibility and trading accuracy for different market participants. It includes various market participants such as large institutions and active crypto futures traders.

Group’s venture into crypto

In 2017, the CME Group ventured into the crypto space, becoming the second derivatives exchange for supporting Bitcoin futures contracts. The company was trailing its most significant competitor, CBOE Global Markets. Towards the end of 2020, the CME cumulative Bitcoin futures volume increased to $100 billion.

CME Group has launched several crypto derivatives products, including micro-sized Bitcoin and Ether options. The contracts equate to 10% of the size of their respective cryptocurrency assets, allowing traders to access more opportunities to hedge against their exposure.

On July 28, CME Group said its micro Bitcoin product reported an average daily volume of 17,400 contracts in Q2 2022. The daily volume for the Ethereum micro contract was 21,300 contracts.

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