Institutional investors pour into CME Group’s regulated crypto derivatives markets, setting a series of records across ether futures and options solana and XRP, CME told CoinDesk on Thursday.
Since Oct. 10, open interest across CME’s crypto futures and options is up 27%, an increase the exchange attributes to a shift away from offshore markets following a wave of liquidations last week.
On Tuesday, open interest in ETH futures reached 48,600 contracts – an all-time high – with SOL and XRP futures also hitting all-time highs of 20,700 and 10,100 contracts respectively.
Open interest in options hit $9 billion, another record, underscoring how more traders are using CME products to hedge or speculate in regulated instruments rather than offshore alternatives. CME’s Micro Ether futures were second in volume Tuesday, reflecting the broader shift.
“Top 10 [open interest] days were all in October, demonstrating strong conviction and expanded participation in the regulated crypto derivatives market,” said a CME spokesperson, highlighting the expanded market participation and growing confidence among professional investors.
The trend builds on CME’s third-quarter results, where the combined volume of crypto futures and options topped $900 billion and average daily open interest reached $31.3 billion. In September, the nominal open interest rate peaked at $39 billion. Over 1,000 large open interest holders were active during that period, suggesting that the use of these products is expanding beyond a niche circle of traders.
This growth is not limited to bitcoin or ether. Since launching earlier this year, CME’s solana and XRP futures have attracted considerable attention. Solana futures crossed $2.1 billion in open interest in September, while XRP hit $1.4 billion.
