CME Group Brings Cardano, Chainlink and Stellar Futures to US Markets

TLDR

• CME Group will launch futures contracts for Cardano (ADA), Chainlink (LINK), and Stellar (XLM) on February 9, pending regulatory approval
• The new contracts will include both standard and micro sizes, with position ranges from 10,000-100,000 ADA, 250-5,000 LINK, and 12,500-250,000 XLM
• CME’s current crypto derivatives suite includes Bitcoin, Ether, XRP, and Solana futures and options regulated by the CFTC
• Bitcoin futures volumes and open interest dropped sharply in December 2025, marking the weakest month of the year
• CME plans to move crypto futures toward “always on” continuous trading in 2026

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CME Group announced Thursday it will list futures contracts for three altcoins on February 9. The Chicago-based derivatives exchange plans to offer regulated contracts tied to Cardano, Chainlink and Stellar.

The launch requires regulatory approval from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. CME Group currently operates CFTC-regulated futures and options for Bitcoin, Ether, XRP and Solana.

The exchange will offer both standard and micro futures contracts for each token. Standard contracts will range from 100,000 ADA, 5,000 LINK and 250,000 XLM. Micro contracts will start at 10,000 ADA, 250 LINK and 12,500 XLM.

Futures contracts allow traders to gain price exposure or hedge risk without holding the actual tokens. The micro contracts appear designed for retail traders, though access depends on broker support.

Growing Retail Demand for Crypto Derivatives

Martin Franchi serves as CEO of NinjaTrader, a US-based retail futures trading platform. He said digital assets are reaching a turning point as they become more common in investor portfolios.

Franchi stated the new contracts reflect growing demand from retail traders. He noted traders want regulated crypto futures and more product options.

CME Group recently partnered with Nasdaq Stock Exchange to unify their crypto benchmarks. The exchanges rebranded the Nasdaq Crypto Index as the Nasdaq-CME Crypto Index. The index tracks Bitcoin, Ether, XRP, Solana, Chainlink, Cardano and Avalanche prices.

The US crypto futures market remains heavily concentrated in Bitcoin and Ether products. Only limited expansion into other digital assets has occurred in 2025.

Coinbase operates the Coinbase Derivatives Exchange with CFTC-regulated futures for Bitcoin and Ether. The platform launched for institutional clients in June 2023. Coinbase expanded access to smaller retail contracts in May 2025.

Kraken launched a domestic derivatives platform in July 2025. US traders can access cryptocurrency futures listed on CME Group through this platform. Kraken offers perpetual futures for several altcoins on its global platform, but US users can only trade CME-listed products.

Late 2025 Trading Volumes Decline

CME Group reported record activity across crypto futures and options in 2025. Average daily volumes and open interest reached new highs earlier in the year.

Trading momentum faded toward year-end. Bitcoin futures volumes and open interest fell sharply in December, marking the weakest month of 2025.

Ethereum and Solana contracts posted consecutive monthly declines from October through December. The decline followed a broad market liquidation in early October.

Bitnomial launched CFTC-regulated futures tied to XRP in March. The derivatives exchange took a direct approach to altcoin futures in the US market.

Bitnomial launched the first regulated monthly futures contracts for Aptos on Wednesday. The contracts are available to institutional clients initially. Retail access is expected in the coming weeks.

Giovanni Vicioso serves as CME Group’s global head of cryptocurrency products. He said clients want trusted, regulated products to manage price risk. The new contracts aim to broaden access as crypto markets develop.

CME Group said last year it plans to move crypto futures and options toward an “always on” trading model in 2026. The exchange has not yet launched this transition. Executives have described crypto as the natural starting point for continuous trading across financial markets.

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