CME Group will launch Cardano, Chainlink and Stellar futures on Feb. 9, pending regulatory approval.
The Chicago-based derivatives exchange announced Wednesday it will offer both standard and micro-sized contracts for all three assets.
The move extends CME's regulated crypto offerings beyond Bitcoin, Ether, XRP and Solana.
Trading is subject to final regulatory review from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
What Happened
CME will list six new contracts when trading begins next month.
Cardano futures will feature standard contracts of 100,000 ADA and micro contracts of 10,000 ADA.
Chainlink products include standard contracts of 5,000 LINK and micro contracts of 250 LINK.
Stellar futures will offer standard contracts of 250,000 Lumens and micro contracts of 12,500 Lumens.
The new listings follow CME's record-breaking 2025, when crypto derivatives average daily volume surged 139% to 278,300 contracts worth $12 billion in notional value.
Giovanni Vicioso, CME's global head of cryptocurrency products, said clients want more regulated products to manage price risk in a growing market.
CME launched Bitcoin futures in December 2017, followed by Ether futures in February 2021.
The exchange added XRP futures in May 2025 and Solana futures in March 2025.
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Why It Matters
The expansion gives institutional and retail traders more regulated options to gain exposure to mid-cap cryptocurrencies.
Cardano ranked as the ninth-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization at approximately $35 billion as of Wednesday.
Chainlink holds the 13th position with roughly $16 billion market cap, while Stellar ranks 30th at $5.4 billion.
CME's micro-sized contracts lower the barrier to entry for smaller traders while standard contracts serve institutional players seeking larger positions.
The exchange's crypto open interest reached $26.4 billion in 2025, up 82% year-over-year.
CME has emerged as a preferred venue for regulated crypto trading, overtaking offshore exchanges in Bitcoin futures open interest during 2025.
Both retail platform NinjaTrader and institutional firm Wedbush Securities backed the launch, citing growing demand for capital-efficient crypto derivatives.
The February launch date aligns with CME's pattern of expanding crypto offerings during periods of heightened market activity.
Micro Ether futures led CME's crypto suite in 2025 with average daily volume of 144,000 contracts.
Regulatory approval remains the final hurdle before the three new futures products can begin trading.
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