CME Group Announces Spot-Quoted Futures for Cryptocurrency and Equity Markets Targetting Retail Investors

Smaller-sized, longer-dated contracts will create new trading opportunities across the leading cryptocurrency and equity index markets

CME Group plans to introduce Spot-Quoted futures on 30 June, subject to regulatory approval. The world's leading derivatives marketplace announced today that these new products will enable investors to trade futures positions in spot-market terms.

The contracts will cover bitcoin and ether cryptocurrencies, as well as the four major U.S. equity indices: S&P 500, Nasdaq-100, Russell 2000 and Dow Jones Industrial Average. A key feature of these new products is their extended duration, allowing investors to hold positions for up to five years without needing to roll contracts.

"Market participants will now be able to trade benchmark cryptocurrency and equity index futures at spot prices, making these instruments more accessible and easier to use than ever before," said Tim McCourt, Global Head of Equities, FX and Alternative Products at CME Group. "In response to growing retail demand for smaller-sized, longer-duration products, these capital-efficient contracts – designed with similar features of perpetual contracts – will provide greater precision and market accessibility to clients. Spot-Quoted futures will provide retail traders more flexibility by allowing them to either maintain the position in accordance with their longer-term view, or to more easily trade in and out of positions, without having to roll positions frequently."

Industry partners have expressed support for the new offering. Steve Sanders, EVP of Marketing and Product Development at Interactive Brokers, commented: "CME Group continues to deliver products that meet the evolving needs of active traders. With Spot-Quoted futures, investors can trade directly at the spot level while gaining the capital efficiency and margin benefits of a futures contract. It is a smart solution for traders looking to optimize both execution and cost."

Martin Franchi, CEO of NinjaTrader, said: "The introduction of Spot-Quoted futures is another example of innovation by CME Group in bringing futures to active traders. The smaller size and longer-dated nature of these new products will allow investors to gain access to the leading cryptocurrencies and equity index markets in a capital-efficient way. We look forward to continuing to work with CME Group to provide our clients with access to these new products."

Thomas Texier, Head of Clearing at Marex, added: "The launch of these new contracts further diversifies our product offering to best serve our clients' needs. At Marex we are always excited to be part of innovation and support the development of new products where there is demand. This is an exciting step for CME Group, and Marex is pleased to be clearing these Spot-Quoted futures for our clients at launch."

Spot-Quoted futures will be listed on and subject to the rules of CME and CBOT.