CME plans Bitcoin Cash and Uniswap futures launch pending review

CME Group plans to launch Bitcoin Cash, or BCH, and Uniswap, or UNI, futures on Oct. 19, pending regulatory review. The exchange will offer standard contracts covering 250 BCH and 10,000 UNI, and Micro contracts covering 25 BCH and 1,000 UNI. The contracts will expand CME's single-asset crypto derivatives suite, which includes futures on Bitcoin, Ether, XRP, Solana, Cardano, Chainlink, Stellar, Avalanche and Sui. Giovanni Vicioso, CME Group's crypto product lead, said crypto market participants need broader regulated tools to manage digital asset price risk as the markets mature. He said the BCH and UNI contracts are designed to provide greater versatility and capital efficiency, allowing clients to manage price risk and gain exposure to the networks through CME's 24/7 regulated marketplace. CME launched its 24/7 crypto futures and options market in June, with $50 million traded and more than 7,200 contracts traded during the opening weekend. CME said its crypto futures and options averaged 279,800 contracts in daily volume during the first half of 2026, representing $8.3 billion in notional value. The company said its expansion into other altcoin futures this year generated more than $1 billion in notional value. In June, CME Group sued the Commodity Futures Trading Commission over perpetual futures in the United States. CME accused the agency of suddenly changing course and said the CFTC's approval of perpetual futures from Kalshi and Coinbase violated the Commodity Exchange Act and threatened CME's retail futures business. CME Chief Executive Terry Duffy said those perpetual futures could be a disaster waiting to happen, citing retail speculation and concerns about high-leverage trading models.