Why CME’s XRP Futures Are Making Waves and Could Spell Big Things for XRP ETFs

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What to know:

  • XRP futures contracts launched on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, raking in over $19 million on their debut day.
  • These contracts are as cash-settled as your uncle’s “promised” birthday present – but at least they’re benchmarked to the CME CF XRP-Dollar Reference Rate!
  • The bigwigs are already eyeing this as a step toward possibly approving an XRP ETF. One can dream, right?

Ah, the grand unveiling of the XRP futures contracts at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) – a momentous occasion, if you’re the kind of person who spends their afternoons tracking cryptocurrency. On their first day, these contracts managed to pull in a not-so-shabby $19 million in notional trading volume. And Tuesday? Oh, it only added another $10 million to the pot. Someone’s doing well.

The very first trade (because every debut needs a little sparkle) was a block transaction, cleared by Hidden Road on May 18. Just picture the scene: no confetti, but the futures contracts came in two flavours: the grandiose standard contracts representing 50,000 XRP, and the micro contracts for those with slightly less appetite (2,500 XRP). Both are cash-settled, of course, and linked to the CME CF XRP-Dollar Reference Rate, which is calculated daily at 15:00 UTC – because nothing says “serious business” like a time zone.

Here’s where the numbers get interesting: standard contracts bagged a solid 7.5 million XRP on Monday and another 2.95 million on Tuesday, while the micro contracts did their bit with 517,000 XRP on Monday and at least 1.2 million XRP on Tuesday. What a whirlwind!

The launch of these regulated futures contracts is being hailed as the first step toward a potential XRP exchange-traded fund (ETF) in the U.S. Yes, you heard that right. The crypto elite are already thinking, “Spot XRP ETFs? A mere formality!” according to Nate Geraci, President of the ETF Store, who posted such thoughts on X (formerly Twitter, because branding).

And despite this impressive debut, XRP’s spot price remained, well, pretty calm – hanging out around $2.38, with a gentle increase of 0.42% over the last 24 hours. Not exactly the rollercoaster some were expecting, but hey, it’s a start.

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2025-05-21 11:00