$UNI has landed on CME: a DeFi protocol’s token has officially entered Wall Street’s futures market.
First, the facts.
On October 19, CME officially launched futures for $BCH and $UNI ; on October 20, it announced that FalconX and GSR had completed the first block trade in the two new contracts.
A few key points:
1) Contract specifications: $BCH standard contracts are 250 tokens, and micro contracts are 25; $UNI standard contracts are 10,000 tokens, and micro contracts are 1,000.
2) Cash-settled, based on the corresponding CME CF reference rates, with no physical delivery.
3) Like CME’s other crypto contracts, they trade virtually 24/7, with only scheduled maintenance windows.
4) With these two additions, CME's single-asset crypto futures now cover 11 assets, according to reports.
5) CME has not disclosed the size, price, or open interest of the first trade.
A few thoughts:
1) The first block trade looks more like a ceremonial opening. The fact that two market makers were willing to take the trade shows there were counterparties, not that the order book has depth. To gauge genuine interest, watch trading volume and open interest over the next few weeks.
2) The significance of $UNI is greater than that of $BCH. A DeFi protocol's governance token has made it onto a regulated futures exchange, so institutions can finally go long, go short, and trade the basis without touching the blockchain. FalconX says institutional demand is spilling over from top assets to “tokens with clear utility.”
3) One awkward detail: both coins rallied on the day their listings were announced in September, but by the time trading actually began, much of those gains had already faded. The market has always been quicker than the announcement when it comes to “buy the rumor, sell the news.”
Sources: CME Group press release dated October 20, CME SER-9820R listing notice, and an ETHNews report dated October 20. Not investment advice.