The Bitnomial exchange announced the listing of XRP U.S. dollar futures (XUS) contracts to be offered for trading on August 13. In a letter addressed to the secretary of the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), Bitnomial claimed that the XUS will be a physically settled margin futures contract based on the value of 100,000 XRP.
The designated contract market (DCM) notified the CFTC through the commission’s secretary, Mr. Christopher Kirkpartick, that it was submitting its initial listing of the XUS contracts for self-certification. The exchange disclosed that the XRP U.S. dollar futures-related rules 1501-1504 will be added to the Bitnomial Rulebook and that Exchange rule 1501 would detail the XUS product specifications.
Bitnomial to launch CFTC-regulated XRP USD futures “XUS”
Bitnomial to launch a #XRP USD Futures – "XUS" !
They notifed the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) on this initial listing.
Intend to trade after August 13th! pic.twitter.com/FDwu0WE5D7
— Vet 🏴☠️ (@Vet_X0) August 13, 2024
According to a letter sent to CFTC secretary Kirkpatrick, Bitnomial confirmed that it will start offering XRP/USD futures contracts, a move that observers consider a massive boost for the XRP token. Bitnomial asserted that the XUS contracts represent 100,000 XRP each and will be settled with actual XRP.
Bitnomial disclosed that it had already received the CFTC’s approval to list futures without the need for prior authorization for individual contracts. The exchange affirmed that XUS contracts followed all necessary regulations, and traders could now bet on XRP price without owning the actual cryptocurrency. Bitnomial said that the move will attract more investors, especially big institutions. It also expects the contracts to increase XRP price volatility and trading volume.
According to Bitnomial’s chief regulatory officer, James Walsh, the total amount of XRP held in digital wallets as of August 5, 2024, surpassed 60 billion ($34B) out of a maximum supply of 100 billion, with approximately 39.1 billion XRP remaining in escrow. The exchange proposed a spot-month position limit of 3,000 XRP futures contracts (~300M XRP), representing 0.049% of the total deliverable supply.
Walsh claimed that manipulating XUS contracts was unlikely since they were traded in multiple foreign and domestic markets and subject to position limits determined by Bitnomial Rule 509.
The launch of XRP futures raises ETF hopes
Bitnomial declared that the XRP news had also fueled speculation about the possibility of an XRP ETF (exchange-traded fund). ETF analyst Nate Geraci stated that ETF launches were preceded by regulated futures contracts for certain altcoins.
According to XRPL Services, XRP had reached a critical adoption milestone, and the conclusion of the legal case between the U.S. SEC and Ripple was an important moment for XRP. Despite the prevailing uncertainty of a possible U.S. SEC appeal, XRPL Services asserted that the ruling had boosted confidence in the potential launch of a spot ETF.
XRPL Services noted that the U.S. SEC’s appeal could cause the XRP to drop to the July 5 low of $0.3814 or jump to the July 13 high of $0.9327 if the U.S. SEC decided not to appeal. Coingecko’s data revealed that XRP had gained 1.55% to close at $0.5777 on August 13 after surging by 2.91% throughout the day on August 12. The data showed that XRP traded at $0.58 as of the time of writing.
