CME plans Bitcoin Cash and Uniswap futures on October 19 pending review

CME Group plans to add Bitcoin Cash (BCH) and Uniswap (UNI) futures to its crypto derivatives lineup on October 19, pending regulatory review. CME confirmed the contracts on Tuesday. Each token will have a standard contract and a smaller micro contract for traders seeking less exposure per contract. Standard contracts will cover 10,000 UNI or 250 BCH. Micro contracts will cover 1,000 UNI or 25 BCH. At current prices, one standard UNI contract represents roughly $90,000 of exposure, while one standard BCH contract represents about $69,000. Futures allow traders to bet on or hedge against a token's price without holding the token. CME is overseen by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the US derivatives regulator. Many banks, hedge funds and asset managers cannot trade on offshore crypto exchanges, making a CME contract often their only route into a coin. UNI rose about 5% and BCH climbed nearly 10% within minutes of the announcement. CME's crypto contracts averaged 279,800 trades a day in the first half of 2026, representing $8.3 billion in daily notional value, according to the announcement. CME listed Cardano, Chainlink and Stellar futures in February and moved to 24/7 crypto trading in May. Giovanni Vicioso, CME Group's Global Head of Cryptocurrency Products, said crypto market participants need broader regulated tools to manage digital asset price risk as the markets mature. The immediate rally was presented as a signal that regulated money can take positions in both tokens. Futures can also make it easier to short them. Bitcoin's first CME futures launched in December 2017, days before that cycle's peak. Cardano was at a five-year low months after its own CME contracts arrived. The listing is therefore a credibility boost rather than a guaranteed price catalyst. Open interest after October 19 will indicate whether institutions build positions in the new contracts. If volume remains thin, the rally may prove to be a one-day headline trade.