CME Group Crypto Derivatives Volume Soars 129% in April With ETH Leading the Charge

CME Group’s cryptocurrency derivatives market posted a steep increase in trading activity in April, reaching a new average daily volume (ADV) of 183,000 contracts worth $8.9 billion in notional terms, the firm reported . That marks a 129% jump compared to the same month last year, suggesting growing institutional interest in crypto markets. Ether led the growth. CME’s ether futures ADV surged 239% to 14,000 contracts, while micro ether futures climbed 165% to 63,000. Micro bitcoin futures followed with a 115% increase to 78,000 contracts. The CME’s bitcoin and ether futures contracts have a larger notional value, of 5 BTC and 50 ETH, respectively. Micro contracts, meanwhile, enable more precise trading, representing just 0.1 of each cryptocurrency. The exchange operator had already reported r ecord cryptocurrency derivatives volumes in the first quarter of the year. For the month of April, its overall ADV reached a record 35.9 million contracts, rising 36% year-over-year. Ether, after significantly underperforming the wider cryptocurrency market, rose just 1.1% over the past 30 days, while the price of bitcoin rose 15.8%. The broader crypto market, measured through the coinDesk 20 ( CD20 ) index, saw a 12.1% rise.