The Chicago Mercantile Commutation (CME) is happy with the results of its Bitcoin options trading product launch on Jan. 13, co-ordinate to CME Group's managing director and global head of equity index culling investment products Tim McCourt.

Start days of new options offering a success

"We're very pleased with how day ane went," McCourt told Cointelegraph in a Jan. xiv interview. "We've had positive feedback from customers on day one," he pointed out, besides noting success and progress on day two.

"Yesterday, nosotros did a full of 55 options contracts, worth 275 Bitcoin," the managing director said. "Each option is on one future, and one future is worth five Bitcoin at CME, so a little over $ii one thousand thousand in terms of notional value, which is great to run across," he added.

As of the 2:40 EST interview, CME'southward Bitcoin options had already posted 15 contracts on Globex, CME's "electronic trading system," McCourt said.

As planned

In fall 2022, the Chicago-based exchange announced its plans to launch a Bitcoin options trading product early in 2022, based on CME's underlying Bitcoin futures trading product.

Subsequently receiving the greenish light from regulators, CME launched its Bitcoin options trading product on Jan. thirteen, 2022, Cointelegraph reported yesterday.

McCourt expressed excitement at seeing a successful first outing for the new product in response to his team's work, also every bit client involvement.

McCourt added that CME hit its desired launch targets relating to "having volume, having block trades, having markets develop throughout the day," too as having "those markets be reasonably tight in terms of discovering a price that keeps in line with the futures throughout the day."

Years in the making

CME'southward Bitcoin options product has been a long time coming.

"It's something nosotros've been talking about with our customers since the launch of Bitcoin futures," McCourt said.

At the height of crypto'due south largest balderdash marketplace in December 2022, CME launched its greenbacks-settled Bitcoin futures trading production equally 1 of the mainstream financial globe'southward beginning major entries into crypto exposure.