Swiss cryptocurrency financial firm Amun AG launched an Exchange Traded Product (ETP) giving investors inverse exposure to Bitcoin (BTC), called 21Shares Short Bitcoin (SBTC). As Cointelegraph Japan reported earlier today, Amun launched the derivative in question on Jan. 22 on Switzerland’s leading stock exchange, Six Swiss Exchange. The description of the product on the firm’s official website is as follows: “The 21Shares Short Bitcoin ETP (Ticker: SBTC) seeks to provide a -1x return to the performance of Bitcoin for a single day. This product obtains short exposure through borrowing Bitcoin and simultaneously selling it on an execution platform.” According to …

The Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) has received necessary regulatory approval and has launched its new Bitcoin (BTC) futures options as of today, Jan. 13. According to the official website of CME, the new type of Bitcoin derivatives contract — Bitcoin futures options — is now live, which comes in line with the company’s plans announced in November 2019. CME’s Bitcoin futures options was subject to “regulatory approval” earlier in the day Specifically, the launch of CME’s Bitcoin futures options follows regulatory approval that the exchange received earlier today, as reported by Cointegraph. As of press time, the approval notice has …

Cryptocurrency derivatives exchange FTX has launched Bitcoin (BTC) options trading on Jan. 11. FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried announced in a tweet yesterday that options were listed on the trading platform. Furthermore, later the same day he also claimed that options trading volume on the exchange reached $1 million in about 2 hours. Noteworthy volume While the announcement does not specify which crypto assets are supported by the options just launched on the platform, the website only shows Bitcoin-based options. According to cryptocurrency data website CoinGecko, FTX is the eighth top crypto asset exchange based on volume, with $277,8 million traded …

The South Korean Presidential Committee on the Fourth Industrial Revolution (PCFIR) has recommended the government to allow financial institutions to launch cryptocurrency-based financial products. Local English-language news outlet BusinessKorea reported on Jan. 6 that the committee recommended products such as Bitcoin (BTC) derivatives to be allowed as part of a strategy for the institutionalization of cryptocurrencies. Crypto assets are here to stay The PCFIR also suggested that the local financial sector should develop and introduce a Korean custody solution to avoid relying only on foreign custodians when handling crypto assets. The committee also noted that Bitcoin should be listed directly …

Paris-based asset management firm Napoleon AM announced the launch of a regulated Bitcoin (BTC) fund, the Napoleon Bitcoin Fund. The company announced in a press release that the fund was created on Nov. 8 and is a specialized professional fund under French law. The company claims that its product is one of the first regulated vehicles giving exposure to Bitcoin’s price movements. The product — with daily liquidity — aims to provide portfolio diversification to institutional and professional investors. The fund replicate the performance of futures listed on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange in cash settlement. High hopes for Bitcoin’s potential …

Malta-based cryptocurrency exchange OKEx announced that it will launch crypto options trading on Dec. 27. In a press release on Dec. 9, the exchange said that the addition of options makes OKEx the “first crypto exchange to offer C2C, spot, futures, perpetual swap, and options trading under the same roof.” The options will allow the platform’s users to buy or sell an underlying asset after paying a premium. While real options trading will begin on Dec. 27, simulated trading is scheduled to start in just three days, on Dec. 12. A major upgrade for OKEx To implement options, the firm …

Bitcoin (BTC) futures open interest on digital asset platform Bakkt has hit a new all-time high. According to a Dec. 3 Twitter post published on Dec. 3 by Bakkt Volume Bot — a Twitter account dedicated to reporting Bakkt trading volumes — Monday’s open interest on Bakkt Bitcoin futures reached a new all-time high of $6.5 million. In futures markets, open interest is the number of open contracts in the market and is often used to indicate the health of the market. When there is a large amount of open interest, new or additional capital is flowing in. Regularly breaking …

The number of open contracts for the Chicago Mercantile Exchange’s (CME) bitcoin (BTC) futures is reportedly at an all-time high, cryptocurrency news outlet Coindesk reported on June 3. According to visible data released by the United States Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) data, the number of open positions for the aforementioned future contract in the week from May 27 to June 3 is 5,190. Coindesk claims that this is the highest number of open positions that CME’s bitcoin futures have ever reported and a 7% increase over the previous week. Per the report, the recent increase in futures trading activity …

Hester Peirce, commissioner at the United States securities regulator, has urged for a less cautious approach towards innovation in the exchange-traded funds (ETFs) space on the regulator’s part. The Financial Times reported on her remarks on June 2. Per the report, the Security and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) Peirce called on her co-commissioners to allow for innovation in the ETF space by lessening their caution. She reportedly commented on the SEC’s approach towards this category of highly regulated financial derivatives, noting that the SEC is “still smothering ETFs with personalised attention as if they were infants.” Peirce also noted that she …

The Japanese Financial Services Agency (FSA) showed a cautious approach towards cryptocurrency-based exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in comments at the finance committee of the upper house of the National Diet on May 30. Cointelegraph Japan reported on the comments earlier today. Per the report, local politician Takeshi Fujimaki noted during the meeting that he expects a crypto-based ETF to be approved in the United States, citing both positive and negative statements released by United States Securities and Exchange Commission commissioner Hester Peirce. He then noted that such a product would be an important development and that Japan should not be left …

Algorithmic cryptocurrency trading firm GSR announced the launch of a new bitcoin (BTC) halo option derivative in a Medium post published on May 13. Per the announcement, the new derivative is an option on the value of a trading account. The trader reportedly pays a premium upfront to buy the option, and the trading account starts with a value of zero. The holder is permitted to do 10 trades per day in the BTC/USD market until maturity. When the option matures, if the value of the account is positive, the holder receives that value: if it is negative, he or …

Private bank Kleinwort Hambros launched an exchange-traded note (ETN) made up of blockchain-related companies, financial news outlet Finextra reported on April 8. Kleinwort Hambros is owned by Societe Generale, acting as their private wealth management division in the United Kingdom. Societe Generale itself is a multinational investment bank headquartered in Paris, with total assets of around 1.3 trillion euros ($1.4 trillion) in 2018. Per the report, the new derivative is available for a minimum investment of £1,000 (equivalent to about $1,300) and has been listed in Luxemburg. The stocks reportedly include 20 companies which are expected to profit from blockchain …