CME Group to Launch Futures Contracts for Cardano, Chainlink, and Stellar on February 9

CME Group will launch futures contracts for Cardano (ADA), Chainlink (LINK), and Stellar (XLM) on February 9, 2026, adding to its growing suite of digital asset derivatives. Each contract will be cash-settled and based on the respective cryptocurrency’s spot price, offering market participants a regulated pathway to hedge or speculate on price movements. The new futures will be available for trading on the CME Globex platform, with contract sizes and tick values aligned to industry standards. The ADA futures will be based on the average price of Cardano’s base currency, while LINK and XLM contracts will follow similar pricing mechanisms tied to their respective underlying assets. Trading hours are expected to mirror those of existing CME crypto futures, operating during U.S. business hours with extended sessions on certain days. This expansion comes amid rising institutional interest in digital assets, with over $3.2 billion in daily trading volume recorded across CME’s existing crypto futures as of late 2025. The addition of three widely held cryptocurrencies is expected to contribute significantly to liquidity, potentially increasing total daily turnover by 15% to 20% in the first quarter of 2026, according to internal forecasts. Market participants, including hedge funds, asset managers, and proprietary trading firms, are anticipated to be primary users. The launch also signals growing acceptance of digital assets within traditional finance, reinforcing the legitimacy of crypto as a tradable asset class under regulated frameworks.