Bitcoin · SEC · Bitcoin ETF · Bitcoinist
Bitcoin Trading Enters New Era With SEC-Approved Nasdaq Index Options
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Trading in the new Bitcoin index options will not begin right away.
Key facts
- They are tied to the Nasdaq Bitcoin Index, a benchmark that tracks one one-hundredth of the CME CF BTC Real Time Index, which pulls pricing data from major cryptocurrency exchanges every 200
- The contracts will trade under the ticker QBTC, with a minimum price increment of one cent and a position limit of 24,000 contracts per side, which works out to roughly 0.12% of Bitcoin’s total
- The approval fits a broader shift underway at the SEC under Chairman Paul Atkins
- The Philadelphia Stock Exchange will host the new QBTC contracts once both regulators have signed off, marking another step in Wall Street’s growing embrace of Bitcoin-linked financial products
Summary
The SEC approved Nasdaq’s proposal to list the options on the Philadelphia Stock Exchange, known as Phlx, on an accelerated basis, with the decision published Friday on the agency’s website. The contracts are European-style and cash-settled, meaning buyers receive the difference between the Bitcoin spot price and the strike price at expiration, no actual Bitcoin changes hands. That structure also removes the risk of early assignment, which sets these apart from options tied to spot Bitcoin ETFs that have been available to investors. The contracts will trade under the ticker QBTC, with a minimum price increment of one cent and a position limit of 24,000 contracts per side, which works out to roughly 0.12% of Bitcoin’s total outstanding supply. They are tied to the Nasdaq Bitcoin Index, a benchmark that tracks one one-hundredth of the CME CF BTC Real Time Index, which pulls pricing data from major cryptocurrency exchanges every 200 milliseconds.