Bitcoin futures are available for purchase on several exchanges. The top five by open interest are OKEx, Binance, BitMEX, and CME. The largest volume is at OXEx, where trading volume can reach $1.5 billion per day. Binance is one of the fastest-growing cryptocurrency-derivative exchanges, with leverage up to 125x.
Expiry date
In order to trade Bitcoin, you can buy futures contracts on exchanges. Then, when the futures contract expires, you must either buy or sell bitcoin at a pre-determined price. In some cases, you can sell the contract before the expiration date if you want to. You can also buy perpetual contracts, which don’t have expiration dates. However, perpetual contracts are still derivative financial products because they replicate the price of the underlying asset.
The CME and Cboe both offer futures contracts in Bitcoin. Cboe began trading bitcoin futures on Dec. 10 and the CME has a contract expiration date of Jan. 26. It’s likely that investors will be watching this contract closely. Although many futures products roll over into the next month, bitcoin futures are settled in cash and could be pushed around if aggressive buying continues. If that happens, arbitragers might step in to fix the price discrepancy.
Units
Bitcoin futures are a recent structure change to the market. Previously, there were no futures contracts for bitcoin, but now there are multiple contracts. These futures allow investors to buy or sell cryptocurrencies and the market has seen a dramatic increase in liquidity. This new development has created a thriving new sector within the bitcoin market.
Bitcoin futures are a new tool for transparency in the cryptocurrency market, price discovery, and risk hedging. They were first introduced on December 10, 2017 at the peak of the exponential bull price rally. Both the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) announced the launch of futures contracts in bitcoin. Both exchanges stressed the advantages of futures trading and argued that Bitcoin futures were a good way to manage risk. However, the prices of Bitcoin futures dropped 41% in the first two months of their introduction.
Risks
There are several risks associated with Bitcoin futures trading. The Securities and Exchange Commission, i.e., SEC has issued a warning about the risks associated with this market, citing its volatility, lack of regulation, and potential for fraud. Investors should carefully review their risk profile and investment objectives before deciding to invest in bitcoin futures. The SEC recommends diversifying your investment portfolio to reduce your overall investment risk.
Bitcoin is a volatile asset, and futures allow investors to take larger positions and benefit from short-term market swings. These futures are not suitable for all investors, however.
Trading platforms
To trade cryptocurrency in the futures market, you need to sign up for a trading platform. It is important to understand how to choose the right platform. You should choose a trading platform based on your trading goals and risk profile. You should also consider the interface and speed of the platform. You should also choose a trading service that offers a demo account.
Deribit is a leading institutional-grade derivatives trading platform that was started in the Netherlands in 2016. Deribit offers traditional futures contracts, perpetual futures contracts, and Bitcoin options. The platform also offers 100X leverage on futures contracts and 50X on Ethereum contracts. Using leverage can result in higher profits, but you require to be aware of the risks involved.