CME Group on Thursday announced the upcoming launch of XRP XRP/USD futures contracts on May 19, subject to regulatory approval, marking a significant expansion of its cryptocurrency derivatives offering.

What Happened: The move comes as institutional and retail interest in XRP continues to grow, despite short-term price volatility.

The new contracts will be cash-settled and based on the CME CF XRP-Dollar Reference Rate, calculated daily at 4:00 p.m. London time.

Traders will have access to two contract sizes: a micro contract (2,500 XRP) and a standard contract (50,000 XRP).

“Interest in XRP and its underlying ledger has steadily increased,” said Giovanni Vicioso, Global Head of Cryptocurrency Products at CME Group. “We are pleased to launch these new futures contracts to provide capital-efficient risk management tools.”

XRP is currently trading at $2.20, down 2.2% on the day, but remains up over 300% year-over-year, according to data from CoinGecko.

Recent data shows $13.88 million in liquidations over 24 hours, with $11.47 million in long positions liquidated amid today's decline, according to CoinGlass data.

Also Read: Bitcoin Will Outperform As Global Liquidity Expands, TradFi Evolves, Says Arthur Hayes

Why It Matters: The XRP listing adds to CME's existing crypto derivatives suite, which includes Bitcoin BTC/USD, Ether ETH/USD, and more recently Solana SOL/USD futures.

In Q1, CME’s crypto futures and options saw an average daily volume of 198,000 contracts, worth $11.3 billion notional, up 141% year-over-year.

Robinhood HOOD will also support the new contracts, expanding access to retail users through its mobile trading ladder. “Bringing CME Group XRP futures to Robinhood is a natural next step,” said JB Mackenzie, VP at Robinhood Futures.

Meanwhile, ETF issuer Teucrium, which launched the 2x Daily Long XRP ETF XXRP, noted it hit $35 million AUM in 10 days, citing strong demand for regulated XRP exposure.

Read Next:

• Bitcoin, Gold Are Top Inflation Hedges, Says Coinbase’s John D’Agostino

Image: Shutterstock