SALES, RENTALS & LAYAWAYS

PROTECTING EVERYTHING THAT HAS EVER BEEN OF VALUE TO YOU

Open 24/7/365

We Have A Life-Time Warranty /
Guarantee On All Products. (Includes Parts And Labor)

Bakkt Is Scheduled To Start Testing Its Bitcoin Futures Contracts

Bitcoin futures platform Bakkt is scheduled to begin testing its new contracts Monday. Bakkt Is Scheduled To Start Testing Its Bitcoin Futures Contracts Today (#GotBitcoin?)

Bakkt Is Scheduled To Start Testing Its Bitcoin Futures Contracts Today (#GotBitcoin?)

Nearly a year since revealing its ambitious vision, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) is still waiting on regulatory approvals to take the platform live. Still, despite having to delay its new market multiple times, the parent of the New York Stock Exchange is moving forward with plans to offer potentially the first physically-settled bitcoin futures in the U.S.

Bakkt announced in May that it would begin testing its bitcoin futures contracts in July, later firming up a July 22 test date.

It will apparently be testing two different types of contracts Monday: a daily and a monthly contract. Bakkt aims to list the futures, which would be traded through ICE Futures U.S. and cleared through ICE Clear U.S., the parent company’s clearinghouse.

It is unclear what specifically will be involved in the testing process. Bakkt did not reply to multiple requests for comment.

The company plans to offer U.S. traders access to physically-settled bitcoin futures contracts, which differ from the cash-settled futures contracts that Chicago exchanges CME and Cboe offered starting at the end of 2017. With cash-settled contracts, traders receive the cash equivalent to the contract’s value when it expires, while with a physically-settled contract they receive the actual underlying commodity – in this case, bitcoin.

Bakkt hopes to draw fresh institutional funding to the bitcoin ecosystem with its regulated product, which may attract investors wary of the broader market.

Launch Delays

Bakkt initially announced a December 2018 launch date, before delaying to January 2019. The company announced another, indefinite delay later as it continued working with regulators to secure the necessary approvals to launch.

While Bakkt was initially said to have asked the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) to approve its new product, Bakkt announced in May that it had filed to self-certify the contracts instead.

Under a self-certification process, a company essentially verifies for the CFTC that its futures contracts fulfill all legal requirements. The CFTC can review this certification, but unless there are any legal or regulatory violations, it cannot stop the product from moving forward.

While Bakkt has self-certified its contracts, it cannot launch the product until it secures a trust company charter through the New York Department of Financial Services. It is unclear if Bakkt has also applied for one of New York’s signature BitLicenses.

Bakkt isn’t alone in trying to launch the first physically-settled bitcoin futures contracts in the U.S.: LedgerX and ErisX have both recently received CFTC approvals to offer their own such product. Neither company has yet announced a firm timeline for when they might launch.

Separately, Seed CX wants to launch forwards contracts, though it is waiting on regulatory approval.

Updated: 11-12-2019

CME Group Announces Launch Date of Options on Bitcoin Futures Product

The Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) Group has announced the date it expects to launch options on Bitcoin (BTC) futures in a statement on Nov. 12.

“In response to growing interest in cryptocurrencies and customer demand for tools to manage bitcoin exposure, CME Group will launch options on Bitcoin futures (BTC) on January 13, 2020,” the company revealed in the announcement. The CME Group said that the upcoming product is still pending regulatory approval.

Contract Specifications

CME Group specified that one Bitcoin futures contract will represent 5 BTC quoted in U.S. dollars, with a block minimum of five contracts. The announcement reads:

“Option exercise results in a position in the underlying cash-settled futures contract. In-the-money options are automatically exercised into expiring cash-settled futures, which settle to the CME CF Bitcoin Reference Rate (BRR) at 4:00 p.m. London time on the last Friday of the contract month.”

CME Group’s Intentions And Expectations On BTC Futures Options

In September, CME Group revealed plans to roll out options on BTC futures by Q1 2020. At the time, Tim McCourt — CME Group global head of equity index and alternative investment products — said that the new products are intended to help institutions and professional traders manage spot market BTC exposure, and enable them to hedge BTC futures positions in a regulated exchange environment.

In October, the company said it expected to see high demand in Asia for its forthcoming BTC options product. McCourt noted that options would likely enable Bitcoin miners to more accurately hedge the costs of their production.

At the same time, McCourt also stated that CME Group has no current plans to launch physically-settled Bitcoin contracts.

Updated: 11-28-2019

Antonopoulos: Cash-Settled Bitcoin Futures Traders Face ‘Black Hole’

Bitcoin (BTC) educator Andreas Antonopoulos says that while futures markets may indeed place a damper on the cryptocurrency’s price, the stakes are different to what you might think.

In a Nov. 27 interview with YouTuber “Ivan on Tech,” Antonopoulos argued against the grain of commonplace fears about the adverse price impact that Bitcoin futures trading has on spot prices.

He suggested it’s the speculators — not the HODLers — who truly have something to fear.

It’s not conspiracy: “it’s the Treasury’s job”

Cash-settled Bitcoin futures — which have been trading since December 2017 on both the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) and Chicago Board of Exchange (CBOE) — have consistently drawn suspicion from traders and analysts, with many contending that Bitcoin’s price is vulnerable to manipulation in advance of contract settlements.

Antonopolous Started The Discussion By Conceding These Fears Are Likely True:

“We know for a fact that when the Bitcoin bubble started to go up really fast in 2017, the U.S. Treasury decided to fast-track the deployments of futures markets in order to stop that bubble.

A lot of people see that as conspiracy, but if you look at the mandate of institutions like the Treasury, that’s actually their job.”

Price suppression, he claimed, is not a matter of conspiracy, it’s a market-based approach to enable those who don’t believe in cryptocurrencies to take a contrarian position by shorting.

This has, of course, put a damper on the price, he said — but it’s also reduced volatility.

A market comprised purely of positive believers — or at least those willing to hold the coin itself — is going to be very “one-sided,” he noted. “It’s not really a market with full liquidity on both sides of the order board.”

Ironically, naysayers who had once decried volatility are now decrying futures “manipulation,” he quipped.

Unlimited Risk

Importantly, Antonopoulos said, futures critics often overlook the real stakes of cash-settled cryptocurrency shorting.

There’s something “really dangerous about doing cash-settled naked shorts against a cryptocurrency,” for when you borrow Bitcoin as part of a short, your liability — your potential risk — is unlimited:

“If they [institutional investors] faced a situation of a renewed Bitcoin bubble and they continued to take a contrarian position against the market, they’d be throwing fiat into a black hole.”

As reported, Intercontinental Exchange (ICE)’s Bakkt platform has recently confirmed its forthcoming launch of a cash-settled Bitcoin (BTC) futures contract.

The new product will be settled against data from Bakkt’s existing physically-delivered Bakkt Bitcoin (USD) Monthly Futures contract — a pioneering product that was the first to give futures traders direct exposure to the underlying cryptocurrency.

Bakkt Is Scheduled To, Bakkt Is Scheduled To, Bakkt Is Scheduled To, Bakkt Is Scheduled To,Bakkt Is Scheduled To, Bakkt Is Scheduled To, Bakkt Is Scheduled To, Bakkt Is Scheduled To

 

Related Articles:

Bitcoin Information & Resources (#GotBitcoin?)

Iran Recognizes Bitcoin And Crypto As An Official Industry, Says MP (#GotBitcoin?)

Bitcoin Network Now 8 Times More Powerful Than It Was At $20K Price (#GotBitcoin?)

Crypto Exchange BitMEX Under Investigation By CFTC: Bloomberg (#GotBitcoin?)

“Bitcoin An ‘Unstoppable Force,” Says US Congressman At Crypto Hearing (#GotBitcoin?)

Bitcoin Network Is Moving $3 Billion Daily, Up 210% Since April (#GotBitcoin?)

Cryptocurrency Startups Get Partial Green Light From Washington

Fundstrat’s Tom Lee: Bitcoin Pullback Is Healthy, Fewer Searches Аre Good (#GotBitcoin?)

Bitcoin Lightning Nodes Are Snatching Funds From Bad Actors (#GotBitcoin?)

The Provident Bank Now Offers Deposit Services For Crypto-Related Entities (#GotBitcoin?)

Bitcoin Could Help Stop News Censorship From Space (#GotBitcoin?)

US Sanctions On Iran Crypto Mining — Inevitable Or Impossible? (#GotBitcoin?)

US Lawmaker Reintroduces ‘Safe Harbor’ Crypto Tax Bill In Congress (#GotBitcoin?)

EU Central Bank Won’t Add Bitcoin To Reserves — Says It’s Not A Currency (#GotBitcoin?)

The Miami Dolphins Now Accept Bitcoin And Litecoin Crypt-Currency Payments (#GotBitcoin?)

Trump Bashes Bitcoin And Alt-Right Is Mad As Hell (#GotBitcoin?)

Goldman Sachs Ramps Up Development Of New Secret Crypto Project (#GotBitcoin?)

Blockchain And AI Bond, Explained (#GotBitcoin?)

Grayscale Bitcoin Trust Outperformed Indexes In First Half Of 2019 (#GotBitcoin?)

XRP Is The Worst Performing Major Crypto Of 2019 (GotBitcoin?)

Bitcoin Back Near $12K As BTC Shorters Lose $44 Million In One Morning (#GotBitcoin?)

As Deutsche Bank Axes 18K Jobs, Bitcoin Offers A ‘Plan ฿”: VanEck Exec (#GotBitcoin?)

Argentina Drives Global LocalBitcoins Volume To Highest Since November (#GotBitcoin?)

‘I Would Buy’ Bitcoin If Growth Continues — Investment Legend Mobius (#GotBitcoin?)

Lawmakers Push For New Bitcoin Rules (#GotBitcoin?)

Facebook’s Libra Is Bad For African Americans (#GotBitcoin?)

Crypto Firm Charity Announces Alliance To Support Feminine Health (#GotBitcoin?)

Canadian Startup Wants To Upgrade Millions Of ATMs To Sell Bitcoin (#GotBitcoin?)

Trump Says US ‘Should Match’ China’s Money Printing Game (#GotBitcoin?)

Casa Launches Lightning Node Mobile App For Bitcoin Newbies (#GotBitcoin?)

Bitcoin Rally Fuels Market In Crypto Derivatives (#GotBitcoin?)

World’s First Zero-Fiat ‘Bitcoin Bond’ Now Available On Bloomberg Terminal (#GotBitcoin?)

Buying Bitcoin Has Been Profitable 98.2% Of The Days Since Creation (#GotBitcoin?)

Another Crypto Exchange Receives License For Crypto Futures

From ‘Ponzi’ To ‘We’re Working On It’ — BIS Chief Reverses Stance On Crypto (#GotBitcoin?)

These Are The Cities Googling ‘Bitcoin’ As Interest Hits 17-Month High (#GotBitcoin?)

Venezuelan Explains How Bitcoin Saves His Family (#GotBitcoin?)

Quantum Computing Vs. Blockchain: Impact On Cryptography

This Fund Is Riding Bitcoin To Top (#GotBitcoin?)

Bitcoin’s Surge Leaves Smaller Digital Currencies In The Dust (#GotBitcoin?)

Bitcoin Exchange Hits $1 Trillion In Trading Volume (#GotBitcoin?)

Bitcoin Breaks $200 Billion Market Cap For The First Time In 17 Months (#GotBitcoin?)

You Can Now Make State Tax Payments In Bitcoin (#GotBitcoin?)

Religious Organizations Make Ideal Places To Mine Bitcoin (#GotBitcoin?)

Goldman Sacs And JP Morgan Chase Finally Concede To Crypto-Currencies (#GotBitcoin?)

Bitcoin Heading For Fifth Month Of Gains Despite Price Correction (#GotBitcoin?)

Breez Reveals Lightning-Powered Bitcoin Payments App For IPhone (#GotBitcoin?)

Big Four Auditing Firm PwC Releases Cryptocurrency Auditing Software (#GotBitcoin?)

Amazon-Owned Twitch Quietly Brings Back Bitcoin Payments (#GotBitcoin?)

JPMorgan Will Pilot ‘JPM Coin’ Stablecoin By End Of 2019: Report (#GotBitcoin?)

Is There A Big Short In Bitcoin? (#GotBitcoin?)

Coinbase Hit With Outage As Bitcoin Price Drops $1.8K In 15 Minutes

Samourai Wallet Releases Privacy-Enhancing CoinJoin Feature (#GotBitcoin?)

There Are Now More Than 5,000 Bitcoin ATMs Around The World (#GotBitcoin?)

You Can Now Get Bitcoin Rewards When Booking At Hotels.Com (#GotBitcoin?)

North America’s Largest Solar Bitcoin Mining Farm Coming To California (#GotBitcoin?)

Bitcoin On Track For Best Second Quarter Price Gain On Record (#GotBitcoin?)

Bitcoin Hash Rate Climbs To New Record High Boosting Network Security (#GotBitcoin?)

Bitcoin Exceeds 1Million Active Addresses While Coinbase Custodies $1.3B In Assets

Why Bitcoin’s Price Suddenly Surged Back $5K (#GotBitcoin?)

Zebpay Becomes First Exchange To Add Lightning Payments For All Users (#GotBitcoin?)

Coinbase’s New Customer Incentive: Interest Payments, With A Crypto Twist (#GotBitcoin?)

The Best Bitcoin Debit (Cashback) Cards Of 2019 (#GotBitcoin?)

Real Estate Brokerages Now Accepting Bitcoin (#GotBitcoin?)

Ernst & Young Introduces Tax Tool For Reporting Cryptocurrencies (#GotBitcoin?)

Recession Is Looming, or Not. Here’s How To Know (#GotBitcoin?)

How Will Bitcoin Behave During A Recession? (#GotBitcoin?)

Many U.S. Financial Officers Think a Recession Will Hit Next Year (#GotBitcoin?)

Definite Signs of An Imminent Recession (#GotBitcoin?)

What A Recession Could Mean for Women’s Unemployment (#GotBitcoin?)

Investors Run Out of Options As Bitcoin, Stocks, Bonds, Oil Cave To Recession Fears (#GotBitcoin?)

Goldman Is Looking To Reduce “Marcus” Lending Goal On Credit (Recession) Caution (#GotBitcoin?)

Our Facebook Page

Your Questions And Comments Are Greatly Appreciated.

Monty H. & Carolyn A.

Go back

Leave a Reply