Recently, CME Group said it plans to launch bitcoin futures in the fourth quarter. The new contract will be cash-settled, based on the CME CF Bitcoin Reference Rate (BRR) which serves as a once-a-day reference rate of the U.S. dollar price of bitcoin. Bitcoin futures will be listed on and subject to the rules of CME.
CME Group and Crypto Facilities Ltd. also publish the CME CF Bitcoin Real Time Index (BRTI) to provide price transparency to the spot bitcoin market. The BRTI combines global demand to buy and sell bitcoin into a consolidated order book and reflects the fair, instantaneous U.S. dollar price of bitcoin in a spot price. The BRTI is published in real time and is suitable for marking portfolios, executing intra-day bitcoin transactions and risk management.
Previously, the “SEC concluded that bitcoin was an unregulated market, and because of that it would be unable to enter into surveillance agreements with other relevant agencies, such as the Commodities Futures Trading Commission and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority,” according to CNBC.
For more information on the cryptocurrency, visit our Bitcoin category.