CME Group is reportedly gearing up to introduce futures contracts for Solana (SOL) and XRP, as per social media reports and images shared on Jan. 22.
However, CME Group has not made an official statement on the subject yet, leaving the authenticity of the images unconfirmed, leading to widespread speculation.
The news initially emerged when an X user identified as Summers shared a screenshot of a purported CME page used for testing. This page, currently inaccessible, is scheduled for a pre-launch on Feb. 10.
Alex Thorn, head of research at Galaxy Digital, later posted images indicating that CME would be offering futures and micro futures contracts for both assets, settled in cash.
The Solana futures contract size is 500 SOL, with the micro version at 25 SOL. The XRP futures contract is set at 50,000 XRP, while its micro version is 2,500 XRP.
Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart cautioned that the page could potentially be fake but mentioned that futures contracts for SOL and XRP are to be expected.
Seyffart also noted that if the images and website turn out to be fake, it would be a well-executed fakeout.
Meanwhile, Bloomberg senior ETF analyst Eric Balchunas anticipates an exchange-traded fund (ETF) tracking SOL futures by mid-March and raised questions about the demand for such a product with a spot SOL ETF on the horizon.
Over 30 ETFs
The US market is witnessing a surge in crypto-related ETF filings. Seyffart recently highlighted that 33 ETFs, filed by 13 different issuers, are currently awaiting approval by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
In addition to ETFs filed last year tracking XRP, SOL, Hedera (HBAR), Litecoin (LTC), and baskets of assets, funds tied to memecoins have also emerged.
On Jan. 21, Rex Shares filed for seven different spot ETFs, including three tied to memecoins like Official Trump (TRUMP), Dogecoin (DOGE), and Bonk (BONK). Balchunas remarked that the situation was surreal.
Although Bloomberg ETF analysts anticipated a wave of crypto ETF filings this year, they did not foresee memecoin-indexed spot funds in their predictions.
Matthew Sigel, head of digital assets research at VanEck, urged the SEC to revert the ETF approval process to a “first-come, first-served” basis given the influx of new applications.
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