ChainCatcher news, according to Barrons, Coinbase has met the conditions to become an acquisition target. If it can merge with a traditional exchange, it could create a company that possesses both expertise and industry influence, thereby dominating the currently fragmented cryptocurrency market.Currently, Coinbase has a price-to-earnings ratio of about 22 times and a total market capitalization of approximately $52 billion. However, major U.S. exchanges have the capability to make this deal happen. The parent company of the New York Stock Exchange—Intercontinental Exchange (ICE)—has a market capitalization of up to $100 billion and a price-to-earnings ratio of 36 times. Its CEO, Jeffrey Sprecher, is married to Kelly Loeffler, a member of the Trump administration.The global futures trading giant CME Group has a market capitalization of $93 billion and a price-to-earnings ratio of 26 times. Nasdaq is known for its technological strength and global network, with a market capitalization of $47 billion and a price-to-earnings ratio of 41 times. If Coinbase can collaborate with major U.S. exchanges, it will be able to unlock doors to power and markets that may currently seem out of reach.Large investors may push for a top exchange to acquire Coinbase, allowing the new company to maximize investment returns as cryptocurrency gradually moves from the financial frontier to the mainstream.

ChainCatcher news, according to PR Newswire, the CME Group announced today that it plans to launch Solana (SOL) futures on March 17, which will be cash-settled and based on the CME CF Solana Dollar Reference Rate, a daily reference rate for the SOL dollar price calculated at 4:00 PM London time. The trading unit for the micro contract is 25 SOL, and for the standard contract, it is 500 SOL.It is reported that the relevant listing is still pending regulatory review.

ChainCatcher news, The ETF Store president Nate Geraci stated on social media that the CME plans to launch SOL futures on March 17, which will be cash-settled, benefiting SOL ETF applications.

ChainCatcher news, according to the CME Group, in addition to SOL futures, the CME plans to launch Micro SOL futures on March 17, providing investors with regulated exposure to Solana investments.

ChainCatcher news, the CME Group announced that the first Bitcoin Options on Bitcoin Friday Futures have been completed. The trade took place on Sunday, February 23, local time, executed by Cumberland DRW and Galaxy, and cleared by Marex. It is reported that this product will complement the CME Group's existing suite of physically settled options on Bitcoin, Ethereum, Micro Bitcoin, and Micro Ether futures.

ChainCatcher News: Recently, Forbes released a ranking of the world's most trusted cryptocurrency exchanges, evaluating over 200 exchanges based on metrics such as security, transparency, compliance, and trading costs. CME Group topped the list, followed by Coinbase, Bitstamp, Binance, and Robinhood in second to fifth places.Other exchanges on the list include Kraken, Gemini, Crypto.com, Fidelity, Bitget, OKX, HTX, Bybit, among others, covering major markets in the United States, Europe, Asia, and Latin America. These exchanges collectively hold approximately $1.2 trillion in customer assets, with website visits reaching 438 million in November. The report also noted that trading fees and spreads are important considerations for investors when choosing an exchange.

ChainCatcher news, Payal Shah, Director of Stock and Cryptocurrency Research and Product Development at CME Group, stated that ETH's performance will surpass BTC this year.The article mentions that Ethereum has risen about 53% in 2024, while Bitcoin has increased by 113%; however, Ethereum's recent performance shows a promising outlook. Since the announcement of the U.S. election results, Ethereum has risen by 39%, exceeding Bitcoin's 35% increase, indicating that the market's optimism regarding the pro-cryptocurrency policies expected from the elected President Donald Trump has fueled Ethereum's potential recovery. Additionally, other key factors driving this optimism include strong staking activity, stable transaction fees, and growing institutional interest, particularly through ETFs.

According to ChainCatcher news, as reported by PR Newswire, the derivatives market CME Group announced market statistics indicating that the average daily trading volume of contracts for the entire year of 2024 will reach 26.5 million, with the average daily trading volume of cryptocurrency contracts increasing by 203%, reaching approximately 117,000 contracts (6.8 billion USD), including:The annual average daily trading volume of micro Bitcoin futures will reach 48,000 contracts;The annual average daily trading volume of micro Ethereum futures will reach 41,000 contracts;The annual average daily trading volume of Bitcoin futures will reach 16,000 contracts;The annual average daily trading volume of Ethereum futures will reach 6,400 contracts.

ChainCatcher news, according to the official announcement, the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) will launch Bitcoin Friday futures (BFF) on September 30, 2024, providing a precise and flexible way to trade Bitcoin.Each BFF contract represents 1/50 of a Bitcoin, ensuring capital efficiency and accessibility. These shorter-term contracts expire every Friday at 4 PM (Eastern Time) and settle based on the CME CF Bitcoin Reference Rate New York variant, which may be closer to the Bitcoin spot price.

ChainCatcher news, according to Sharpe AI's announcement on the X platform, cryptocurrency data analysis platform Sharpe Terminal's developer Sharpe Labs Ltd. has signed a multi-year information licensing agreement with CME Group.Under the terms of the agreement, Sharpe AI will license market data from CME Group to be integrated into the Sharpe Terminal platform, allowing Sharpe's institutional clients to access benchmark derivatives data from the Chicago Mercantile Exchange as well as Sharpe's cryptocurrency market analysis.

ChainCatcher news, according to PR Newswire, the Chicago Mercantile Exchange and cryptocurrency benchmark index provider CF Benchmarks announced today that they plan to launch two new cryptocurrency reference rates and real-time indices for XRP and ICP starting July 29. These will be calculated and published daily by CF Benchmarks, utilizing pricing data from cryptocurrency trading platforms that are currently part of the CME CF benchmark reference rate and real-time index suite.Each new benchmark will be calculated using pricing data from at least two trading platforms, which include Bitstamp, Coinbase, Gemini, itBit, Kraken, and LMAX Digital.

ChainCatcher news, according to the CME FedWatch tool data, as of June 23, 2024, the probability that the Federal Reserve will keep interest rates unchanged at the upcoming FOMC meeting is 89.7%, while the probability of a 25 basis point rate cut is 10.3%.

ChainCatcher news, according to Bloomberg, Goldman Sachs, BNY Mellon, the Chicago Options Exchange, and several other companies have completed a series of pilot tests on a blockchain network connecting different banks and financial institutions.It is reported that this is the largest inter-chain experiment in the capital markets, using the Canton Network, which was launched by the startup Digital Asset Holdings last May. Participants executed over 350 simulated transactions on the blockchain, involving tokenized assets, fund registration, digital cash, repurchase agreements, securities lending, and margin management.

ChainCatcher news, the CME Group will launch euro-denominated micro Bitcoin and Ethereum futures on March 18, pending regulatory review.

ChainCatcher news, according to CME's "FedWatch": The probability that the Federal Reserve will keep the interest rate unchanged in the range of 5.25%-5.50% in December is 95.3%, while the probability of a 25 basis point rate hike is 4.7%.The probability of maintaining the interest rate unchanged until February next year is 89.4%, with a cumulative probability of a 25 basis point rate hike at 10.3%. The probability of a cumulative 50 basis point rate hike is 0.3%.By March next year, the probability of a cumulative 25 basis point rate cut is 21.5%, the probability of keeping the interest rate unchanged is 70.4%, the probability of a cumulative 25 basis point rate hike is 7.9%, and the probability of a cumulative 50 basis point rate hike is 0.2%.

ChainCatcher news, the Chicago Mercantile Exchange Group (CME) announced on Thursday that it plans to launch Ethereum/Bitcoin (ETH/BTC) ratio futures on July 31, pending regulatory approval. The futures product will be cash-settled, with its value determined by dividing the CME Ethereum futures final settlement price by the corresponding CME Bitcoin futures final settlement price. In May of this year, the CME added daily-expiring Bitcoin and Ethereum futures options contracts, as well as micro Bitcoin and Ethereum futures. (CoinDesk)

ChainCatcher message, according to data from The Block, as of today, the trading volume of Ethereum options on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME Group) has increased to $272 million this month, compared to $94.7 million in March, with open interest reaching $205 million, setting a new historical high. The growth in Ethereum options trading data this month may be related to the Ethereum Shanghai upgrade.In addition, aside from the Shanghai upgrade, the 30-day moving average of Ethereum spot and futures trading volume is nearing a three-year low, indicating that the growth rate of futures activity is outpacing the demand from spot buyers. (The Block)

ChainCatcher news, the CME Group announced plans to expand its cryptocurrency options contracts for standard and micro Bitcoin and Ethereum contracts starting May 22, currently awaiting regulatory review. Among them, Bitcoin and Ethereum futures options will offer new expiration dates on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday.Micro Bitcoin and Ethereum futures options will add expiration dates on Tuesday and Thursday to the existing Monday, Wednesday, and Friday contract expiration dates. All these new products will complement the existing monthly and quarterly expirations of all Bitcoin and Ethereum futures contracts. (Source link)