Bakkt Bitcoin Futures traded 73 contracts on the first day while getting a lukewarm response from the market. Experts said that Bakkt futures would see an incremental demand going ahead.
On Monday, September, Bakkt announced the commencement of the trading facility for its physically-settled Bitcoin Futures contracts. Bakkt‘s Bitcoin Futures contracts offer both, daily contracts and monthly contract settlement options. Besides, that Bakkt platform also provides Warehouse facility for storing the physically-delivered Bitcoin tokens upon contracts expiry.
But despite much hype surrounding the launch of Bakkt Bitcoin Futures, the first day of trading was not very impactful. On the first day, Bakkt traded around 70 plus contracts only. When compared to the launch of CME Bitcoin Futures in December 2017, this number is very less. The existing data for today shows 3 contracts traded for today.
However, experts argue that it won’t be wise to compare the two Bitcoin futures contracts due to their different nature. While CME’s Bitcoin futures offering is cash-settled, Bakkt’s offers a settlement in physical Bitcoin tokens. As reported by CoinSpeaker, some experts say that Bakkt will see a gradual scale-up due to its physical delivery.
On the other hand, some also say that it would be too early to conclude on Bakkt’s Bitcoin Futures performance. For organizations to enter this platform it takes in setting up accounts, making trading strategies, and other things.
Commitment to Trust Through Regulation and Secure Custody
In a blog post on Monday, September 23, Bakkt CEO Kelly Loeffler said that the launch of Bakkt is an important step towards bringing more trusted infrastructure to digital assets. Loeffler wrote:
“As institutions enter this emerging asset class, they will continue to look to secure infrastructure and the regulatory certainty that it provides. Importantly, these futures contracts now serve as benchmarks established by a trusted price discovery process upon which investors can rely”.
She also added that the Bakkt’s major focus is to win customers’ trust through regulations and secure custody solutions. This way, Bakkt also plans to expand its global footprint by unlocking the value of digital assets in the global economy. Although Bakkt plans to bring financial institutions to its platform, COO Adam White said that they also want retail customers to participate.
During the recent interview with CNN, White added:
“Bakkt is really designed for the institutional trader. So this is a futures contract. That said, we expect this futures contract to trade through retail brokerages as well, so retail customers can trade this contract.”
The Bitcoin price is seeing a further downward pressure today as it has slipped below $9800 levels. At press time, Bitcoin is trading at $9787 with a market cap of $175 billion.
