Deutsche Börse has announced that it is considering launching Bitcoin futures, according to local newspaper WirtschaftsWoche.
The giant exchange is still investigating the subject, but if the move happens, Bitcoin futures contracts will be offered on the Eurex derivative exchange.
The backdrop to this is that two American exchanges have been stealing headlines lately with their Bitcoin futures contracts launched or to be launched imminently. At the time of writing, the price of a single bitcoin is pushing USD 17,000, according to Coindesk.
Bitcoin is currently a very valuable asset, and now that the first major financial institutions have taken it on, others must soon follow.
Bitcoin has been considered a unit of currency in Germany since 2013, and is taxed. It is thus a relatively mature market. According to Reuters, the German finance ministry is carefully monitoring the impact of cryptocurrencies on markets.
Last week, CBOE’s circuit breakers were triggered twice by major spikes in the price of Bitcoin following the initiation of Bitcoin futures trading, which attracted mainly retail traders. CME Group is to launch the same product on the 18th.
(Photo: piqsels)
