Bitcoin Futures Trading Is Officially Here

If you read news about Bitcoin, you probably heard that Bitcoin futures trading is a hot topic. As of this weekend, it isn’t a topic anymore – Bitcoin futures trading is official.

Opening this Sunday, the Chicago Bitcoin futures trading will take place at 400 South LaSalle Street. The first major US exchange has finally put a legal mark on the rumors and decided to offer trading to the wildly growing virtual currency.

With a rise of more than 1500% this year and about 85% in the past few weeks only, Bitcoin has been one of the best things that happened to many (now wealthy) people. Launched in 2009 as an alternative to banks, Bitcoin’s mission is to create a decentralized market where transactions are made easier and safer.

The futures is offered by Cboe Global Markets Inc. and similar contracts which will start trading in a week at another Chicago-based exchange – the CME Group Inc. This may open the door to big amounts of institutional money and make it easier to bet on Bitcoin’s decline. What’s likely at this point is that Bitcoin trading in Chicago is starting slowly and will scale as the popularity for it grows.

As the CEO of Galaxy Investment Partners (a crypto hedge fund) Mike Novogratz said, “If people have expectations that it’s going to have huge liquidity on day one, they’re just wrong.” So, it is safe to say that it will take a while for this type of trading to build liquidity.

Still, not everyone is convinced that the Bitcoin futures trading is a good idea. According to the Futures Industry Association, the contracts are rushed without enough consideration of the risks. Still, the exchange will offer its customers access to the futures with greater restrictions.

At the end of the day, the Bitcoin trading made official is another step towards a bright future for the virtual currency.