Chicago Mercantile Exchange is Launching Bitcoin Futures on Monday, 13. BTC/USD pair signals bullish zone while the crypto space anticipates more altcoin mining operation in the race to diversify income streams.
Into the third week of 2020, we all expect exciting events in the crypto space. Bitcoin gained at least 10% in the second week and hit an annual record of $8,452. The broader market also witnessed similar gains with Litecoin (LTC), Bitcoin SV(BSV) and Bitcoin Cash(BTC) posting similar corrections.
Additionally, several events that could have a broader impact on the crypto space took place last week. US – Iran tensions heightened. Iran admitted to bombing down Ukranian plane among more stories. The industry anticipates that the third week of the year will be busier and markets will post even higher gains.
Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) Bitcoin Futures
In fact, the leading financial derivatives platform Chicago Mercantile Exchange Group (CME) promised to launch the much-awaited options on Bitcoin futures on Monday, January 13.
Given the growing market capitalization of Bitcoin, several options of trading the asset have been growing as well. However, concerns with ETFs (Exchange-traded funds) in the United States means that ETFs will not be available until a while later. Nevertheless, the launch of Bitcoin options will bring in more institutional investors into the market.
Noteworthy, options are financial derivatives that enable holders to buy or sell an asset at a specific price on a predetermined date; However without the obligation to trade them. Hence, such options enable speculators to bet upon a price surge or drop of the asset through leverage trading.
Meanwhile, CME will avail Bitcoin futures on Monday that have a single contract representing BTC 5. These futures will provide more flexibility while managing bitcoin fluctuation risks. Additionally, the options will have the ability to save on potential margin offsets between options and futures. This is possible through the mitigation of risks of counterparty default through the central clearing of the CME market place.
BTC/USD Pair Performance
Bitcoin (BTC) fell from its 2020 high of $8,452 on January 8. The decline was however temporal since the price bounced off the downward correction that had acted as the key resistance. Meanwhile, the many attempts to remain afloat above the $8K support serves as a positive sign. In case the bulls manage to push the price beyond the present $8, 170 price zone, this signal could easily begin a new upward correction. The 20-day exponential moving average (EMA) is steadily rising and has positioned the Relative Strength Index (RSI) in a positive zone.
A position that points out that the market is strongly bullish. However, will the bulls fail to scale and maintain beyond the $8,200 support level, the existing bullish view will certainly be invalidated. BTC/USD pair will turn red in case the price drops below the moving averages and the $7,000 critical support. Well, it would be easy for traders and analysts to watch a stop loss on the long positions around the $6,500 and $6,800 supports.
Mining Pools Integrating More Alternative Coins
A token data and rating analytics ‘TokenInsight’, released a report claiming that mining pools are likely to integrate more altcoins into their mining operations in 2020.
The report noted that altcoin mining has massive market potential. Last year’s report accounts for at least 64 coins that could be mined, in addition to Bitcoin all sum up to 82% of the total market cap.
Nonetheless, altcoins are entering the key stage through both mining and staking. Eventually, the altcoins market is likely to gain more attention from the crypto community. Given the looming Bitcoin halving of miner rewards, mining pools are also looking for diverse ways to boost their revenue streams.