CME Group has announced its intention to launch futures contracts for the cryptocurrency XRP, set to begin trading on May 19, 2025, pending regulatory approval. This will be another step in expanding the range of cryptocurrency derivatives on the exchange, following CME’s addition of Solana futures.
This is reported by Business • Media
According to the official announcement, traders will be able to trade contracts in two sizes — for 2,500 XRP and for 50,000 XRP. Settlement for these contracts will be conducted in fiat currencies, with the CME CF XRP-Dollar serving as the underlying index, which is updated daily at 4:00 PM London time.
Growing Institutional Interest in XRP
This is not the first instance of altcoin futures appearing on the CME exchange. Previously, the company added contracts based on the cryptocurrency Solana. Giovanni Vicioso, the global head of cryptocurrency products at CME, noted that demand for new cryptocurrency derivatives, particularly for XRP, is rapidly increasing. According to him, the level of adoption of XRP among institutional investors and the XRPL network is consistently rising.
“The level of adoption of both the asset and the XRPL network among institutions is continuously increasing,” Vicioso stated.
Following the announcement, the price of XRP surged sharply, exceeding the $2.20 mark during trading, finishing the day at an elevated price, but later the price pulled back down.
On the Binance platform, the XRP/USDT price at the time of writing was over $2.20. This fact confirms the high interest of investors in the asset.
Future Prospects for XRP
Earlier, analysts at Kaiko Research reported that given the growing interest from institutional investors, it is quite possible that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will soon approve the launch of exchange-traded funds based on XRP, which would further strengthen its position in the market.
If such predictions come true, it could significantly increase the price and popularity of XRP in the future. At this time, the cryptocurrency remains one of the most discussed assets in the crypto sphere.