EQUOS, a Singapore-based digital currency exchange operated by Diginex, has announced the launch of a new Bitcoin (BTC) futures product without any settlement dates, marking a substantial leap in the BTC derivatives market.
The firm introduced the BTC Perpetual Futures Contract on Thursday, a product it says is “well suited to the current trading environment.” The Perpetual contract is geared toward professional traders with various risk profiles, with prices and liquidity provided by independent market makers.
The exchange claims that its new BTC contract is backstopped by its liquidity reserves, which are partially funded through fees and trading revenue.
Unlike traditional futures products, a perpetual futures contract doesn’t have a fixed expiry or settlement date, which means the user can hold the position for as long as they wish. Perpetual contracts on Bitcoin are currently offered by BitMEX, one of the largest crypto derivatives platforms.
Richard Byworth, CEO of Diginex, said the new futures contract is intended to bring wider functionality to the crypto derivatives market, a move he says will “facilitate wider institutional and professional trader adoption of cryptoassets.”
He continued:
“This is just the first in a product suite that will offer investors more dynamic hedging tools, fairer liquidation, a platform that is not trading against its users and reputational protection for investors seeking a KYC/AML compliant ecosystem.”
The Bitcoin futures market has exploded over the past few quarters, highlighting growing institutional uptake of the digital asset. EQUOS claims that crypto derivatives grew at over four times the pace of the spot market in the third quarter, reaching a daily volume peak of $67 billion at the end of November.
