CME Group plans to launch Bitcoin Cash and Uniswap futures

Two more chips on the Chicago screens. CME Group plans to launch Bitcoin Cash (BCH) and Uniswap (UNI) futures on October 19, 2026, subject to regulatory review. This extension would bring to eleven the number of cryptocurrencies individually covered by its futures.

The new products will be offered in two formats and paid for in cash. They will allow investors to trade variations in BCH and UNI without directly holding the tokens.

The standard contract on Bitcoin Cash will represent 250 BCH, while its micro version will be for 25 BCH. For Uniswap, the sizes will reach 10,000 UNI and 1,000 UNI respectively. This dual range allows investors to more precisely adjust their exposure and the capital locked up as collateral.

Contracts will be settled in cash. No BCH or UNI will therefore change ownership at maturity. The clearing house will calculate the financial result based on the CME CF reference rates, then credit or debit the accounts depending on the difference between the entry price and the settlement price.

A fund will thus be able to hedge against a decline, take a bullish position or trade the gap between the spot and futures markets without opening a crypto wallet. Clearing by CME Clearing also limits the risk of direct default between the two parties.

Both products must also support Basis Trade at Index Close or BTIC. This mechanism allows the difference between the future and the reference rate calculated at closing to be negotiated in advance. It is of particular interest to desks seeking to hedge an execution price or to build a yield strategy between the spot market and derivative products.

The launch remains scheduled for October 19, subject to the completion of regulatory review. CME therefore does not yet present this date as definitively acquired.

Bitcoin Cash and Uniswap will join a lineup already including bitcoin, ether, XRP, Solana, Cardano, Chainlink, Stellar, Avalanche and Sui. ADA, LINK and XLM debuted in February 2026, then AVAX and SUI followed in May. The CME crypto markets have also been operating continuously since the end of May, with a short weekly period devoted to technical maintenance.

This multiplication of underlying assets responds to a demand for hedging which is no longer limited to bitcoin and ether. Bitcoin Cash remains one of the leading payments cryptocurrencies, while UNI gives exposure to Uniswap, a leading decentralized exchange protocol.

The figures published by CME reflect this progression. In the first half of 2026, crypto futures and options saw an average daily volume of 279,800 contracts, or approximately $8.3 billion in notional value. Average open interest reached 264,600 contracts, worth almost $15.4 billion.

Contracts launched in 2026 on Cardano, Chainlink, Stellar, Avalanche and Sui have already exceeded $1 billion in cumulative notional volume. BCH and UNI therefore extend an already committed strategy rather than a sudden opening to altcoins.