CME Group Launches 24/7 Cryptocurrency Futures Trading
Written by Emily J. Thompson, Senior Investment Analyst
Updated: 1 hour ago
0mins
Should l Buy CME?
Source: Benzinga
- 24/7 Trading Launch: CME Group will introduce 24/7 cryptocurrency futures and options trading starting May 29, addressing the gap between continuous digital asset trading and regulated futures, thereby enhancing clients' risk management capabilities.
- Surge in Client Demand: Tim McCourt, CME's Global Head of Equities, FX, and Alternative Products, noted that client demand for crypto risk management reached an all-time high, with a record $3 trillion in notional volume across crypto derivatives in 2025, indicating robust market growth.
- Significant Volume Growth: Year-to-date, CME reported an average daily crypto volume of 407,200 contracts, up 46% year-over-year, and average daily open interest of 335,400 contracts, a 7% increase, reflecting sustained demand for its products.
- Enhanced Competitive Edge: The 24/7 trading structure eliminates timing mismatches for institutional traders between limited-hour CME futures and unregulated crypto exchanges, allowing CME to maintain competitiveness against rivals like Coinbase and Kraken in the market share battle.
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Analyst Views on CME
Wall Street analysts forecast CME stock price to fall
10 Analyst Rating
4 Buy
4 Hold
2 Sell
Hold
Current: 302.550
Low
209.00
Averages
285.90
High
320.00
Current: 302.550
Low
209.00
Averages
285.90
High
320.00
About CME
CME Group Inc. provides a derivatives marketplace. The Company enables clients to trade futures, options, cash and over the counter (OTC) markets, optimize portfolios, and analyze data. It exchanges offer a range of global benchmark products across all major asset classes based on interest rates, equity indexes, foreign exchange (FX), energy, agricultural products and metals. It offers futures and options on futures trading through the CME Globex platform, fixed income trading via BrokerTec and FX trading on the EBS platform. In addition, it operates central counterparty clearing provider, CME Clearing. Its products provide a means for hedging, speculation and asset allocation related to the risks associated with, among other things, interest rate sensitive instruments, and changes in the prices of agricultural, energy and metal commodities. It provides clearing and settlement services for a range of exchange-traded futures and options on futures contracts and OTC derivatives.
About the author

Emily J. Thompson
Emily J. Thompson, a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with 12 years in investment research, graduated with honors from the Wharton School. Specializing in industrial and technology stocks, she provides in-depth analysis for Intellectia’s earnings and market brief reports.
- 24/7 Trading Launch: CME Group announced the launch of 24/7 trading for its cryptocurrency futures and options starting May 29, marking a significant expansion in the digital asset space that is expected to attract more investors.
- Significant Volume Growth: Year-to-date in 2026, the average daily volume for crypto futures and options surged by 46% year-over-year to 407,200 contracts, indicating strong market demand that could drive future revenue growth for the company.
- Rising Open Interest: The average daily open interest increased by 7% to 335,400 contracts, reflecting sustained investor interest and confidence in the cryptocurrency market, which further solidifies CME's market position.
- Active Futures Trading: CME Group experienced a 47% year-over-year rise in futures average daily volume to 403,900 contracts, demonstrating robust performance in the derivatives market that may enhance the company's market share and profitability.
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- 24/7 Trading Launch: CME Group will introduce 24/7 cryptocurrency futures and options trading starting May 29, addressing the gap between continuous digital asset trading and regulated futures, thereby enhancing clients' risk management capabilities.
- Surge in Client Demand: Tim McCourt, CME's Global Head of Equities, FX, and Alternative Products, noted that client demand for crypto risk management reached an all-time high, with a record $3 trillion in notional volume across crypto derivatives in 2025, indicating robust market growth.
- Significant Volume Growth: Year-to-date, CME reported an average daily crypto volume of 407,200 contracts, up 46% year-over-year, and average daily open interest of 335,400 contracts, a 7% increase, reflecting sustained demand for its products.
- Enhanced Competitive Edge: The 24/7 trading structure eliminates timing mismatches for institutional traders between limited-hour CME futures and unregulated crypto exchanges, allowing CME to maintain competitiveness against rivals like Coinbase and Kraken in the market share battle.
See More
- Real-Time Data Advantage: A joint study by Fed economists and researchers from Northwestern and Johns Hopkins reveals that Kalshi's real-time predictions on key economic data significantly outperform Bloomberg consensus forecasts, particularly in CPI, highlighting its potential in market forecasting.
- Perfect Prediction Record: Kalshi has maintained a perfect track record in rate predictions the day before each FOMC meeting since 2022, indicating its accuracy in rate expectations significantly surpasses that of fed funds futures, which could alter decision-making for market participants.
- Expanding Market Influence: As prediction markets become the preferred tool for traders and policymakers, Kalshi's growth potential is immense, especially through its partnership with Robinhood, granting access to over 27 million active accounts and further solidifying its market position.
- Competitive Pressure: The rise of Kalshi poses a threat to traditional sports betting companies like Flutter Entertainment, which has seen its stock drop over 44% this year, demonstrating the disruptive impact of prediction markets on existing business models and prompting the industry to reassess its strategic direction.
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- 24/7 Trading Initiative: CME Group announced that its cryptocurrency futures and options will be available for round-the-clock trading starting May 29, 2026, which is expected to significantly enhance market liquidity and meet investor demand for flexible trading hours.
- Platform Upgrade: The new trading model will be implemented on the CME Globex platform, allowing seamless trading with only a brief two-hour maintenance window each weekend, which is likely to attract more traders to participate.
- Holiday Trading Protocol: Trades executed over weekends or holidays will carry the following business day as the trade date, with clearing, settlement, and regulatory reporting processed accordingly, enhancing trading convenience and transparency.
- Market Reaction: At the time of this announcement, Bitcoin slipped 0.6% to around $66,014, reflecting a cautious market sentiment towards the new trading arrangements, which may also influence investor trading strategies.
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- Importance of Regulatory Framework: Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon emphasized the critical need for a rules-based system for cryptocurrency and related financial instruments during his remarks at Davos, asserting that such a framework is essential for ensuring the safety and stability of U.S. markets and promoting long-term market health.
- Legislative Stalemate: Solomon's comments come as a Senate committee advances a cryptocurrency market bill aimed at establishing a national regulatory structure, yet the bill has stalled over disputes regarding whether digital asset companies can offer customer rewards, highlighting the complexities and challenges in the legislative process.
- Goldman's Market Positioning: While Solomon expressed a
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Federal Reserve Rate Decision: The Federal Reserve decided to keep the federal-funds rate unchanged during their late January policy meeting.
Previous Rate Cuts: This decision follows three rate cuts that occurred late last year, indicating a pause in monetary policy adjustments.
Committee Division: Minutes from the meeting reveal that there is a division among committee members regarding the next steps for monetary policy.
Future Outlook: The differing opinions within the committee suggest uncertainty about future rate changes and the economic outlook.
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