Credit: Shutterstock photoThe U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission will allow CME Group ( CME ) and CBOE Global Markets ( CBOE ) to list Bitcoin futures.
[ibd-display-video id=2996905 width=50 float=left autostart=true] CME Group's contract will start trading Dec. 18, as investors rush to get a piece of the cryptocurrency mania.
"Bitcoin, a virtual currency, is a commodity unlike any the commission has dealt with in the past," CFTC Chairman Chris Giancarlo said in a statement. "We expect that the futures exchanges, through information sharing agreements, will be monitoring the trading activity on the relevant cash platforms."
Bitcoin topped the key psychological barrier of $10,000 Tuesday and hit $11,000 this week before plunging back below $10,000. It has recovered some losses and was up 8.7% at $10,778.40 on Friday, according to Coindesk .
CME shares were up 0.8% on the stock market today . CBOE added 0.7%.
Bitcoin Investment Trust ( GBTC ) jumped 10%.
As for other Crypto-related stocks Overstock ( OSTK ) fell 10.2% while Riot Blockchain ( RIOT ) and Marathon Patent Group (MARA) shot up 11.1% and 18.7%, respectively.
IBD'S TAKE:Are Bitcoin, Ethereum and other digital currencies real investments or a speculator's game? Individual investors should be extremely cautious about diving into this new area. Read this feature about Bitcoin risks and possible gains first.
But not everyone is bullish on the new currency. On Thursday, Goldman Sachs (GS) CEO Lloyd Blankfein said Bitcoin doesn't meet traditional standards for money , citing its volatility.
Federal Reserve Vice Chairman for Supervision Randal Quarles doesn't think that Bitcoin will be a rival to established currencies and the Fed won't issue its own cryptocurrency.
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The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
