CME Exploring Continuous Crypto Trading; Memecoin Products Not on Agenda

CME Group Expands Crypto Futures but Rules Out Memecoin Products

CME Group, the world’s largest derivatives exchange, continues to grow its cryptocurrency futures offerings but has no plans to enter the memecoin market, citing a lack of practical use cases.

While asset managers like VanEck and 21Shares push to launch spot exchange-traded products (ETPs) for tokens such as dogecoin (DOGE) and Trump Coin (TRUMP), CME remains focused on cryptocurrencies with clear real-world applications.

“We launch products based on coins and tokens that have a defined use case. Memecoins don’t meet that standard, so we do not expect to offer products in that space,” said Gio Vicioso, CME’s global head of cryptocurrency products.

Recently, CME added futures contracts for solana (SOL) and XRP (XRP) to its existing bitcoin (BTC) and ethereum (ETH) products. This strategy has gained traction, with SOL futures trading nearly $5 billion in volume since February and daily volumes averaging between $75 million and $100 million. XRP futures, introduced in May, hit a record $235 million in volume last Friday and have totaled nearly $2 billion in volume to date.

CME’s futures trade on a set weekly schedule, running Sunday 6 p.m. ET through Friday 5 p.m. ET, with a daily one-hour maintenance break. This differs from the 24/7 trading model common in spot crypto markets, which major U.S. stock exchanges like Nasdaq and NYSE are starting to adopt to attract crypto traders.

While CME has not committed to round-the-clock trading, it is actively exploring the idea. “We’re watching market developments closely and considering how to bridge the weekend gap as interest in our products grows,” Vicioso said.