FxNews—Bitcoin futures on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) have reached a record high, totaling 172,430 BTC or $11.6 billion in value. This marks the highest point ever reached by these investments.
A recent report from FxNews highlighted that open interest in cash-margin futures hit a record on the CME, making up 40% of the global market. Open interest is the total number of active futures contracts at any moment.
CME Sees Major BTC Spike, Overtakes Binance
Over the last five days, the CME experienced a sharp increase in open interest, adding 25,125 BTC. This is among the highest amounts recorded in such a short span in recent years.
In June 2023, a similar spike occurred when 26,525 BTC were added, coinciding with BlackRock‘s application for a new Bitcoin ETF. Bitcoin’s price jumped from $25,000 to $30,000 during this time. In October 2023, another significant increase occurred, helping the CME surpass Binance as the top futures exchange. The bitcoin price soared from $25,000 to over $40,000 by year’s end.
Vetle Lunde: Traders Drive Market, Not ETFs
Vetle Lunde, a senior analyst at K33 Research, attributed this growth to active traders and direct market participants rather than to investments in futures-based ETFs like the ProShares Bitcoin ETF (BITO). He emphasized that the actions of individual traders power this trend.
Lunde’s research shows that active and direct traders on the CME hold about 85,623 BTC, similar to the all-time high in March. Meanwhile, the holdings in the 1x leveraged ETF have decreased over the year, while the 2x leveraged ETF, despite a surge in March, has seen only minor growth since.
Lunde also noted that the trading activity is mainly focused around the November expiry date, which follows the U.S. election, suggesting a strategic approach to trading during this period.
J.J Edwards is a finance expert with 15+ years in forex, hedge funds, trading systems, and market analysis.
