The BitMEX exchange, which is one of the leading trading platforms for trading crypto derivatives, has rolled out a new set of quarterly futures contracts that cover major cryptocurrencies, including XRP.
The aforementioned contracts officially went live earlier this Tuesday.
Quarterly futures, explained
Futures make it possible to trade the price of XRP without directly owning the Ripple-linked token.
Unlike perpetual swaps that never expire, quarterly XRP futures have a fixed expiry date. Traders typically use such products for arbitrage or hedging.
For instance, the XRPZ25 contract, which went live on Sept. 9, will expire and settle based on the XRP spot price on Dec. 26.
Meanwhile, the XRPU25 contract, which became available on June 10, will expire on Sept. 26.
BitMEX's XRP offerings
BitMEX's perpetual futures for the XRP token initially went live back in 2020. It is worth noting that the token was added to the platform despite the fact that former CEO Arthur Hayes was highly critical of the token, angering the community with some crude comments directed at the popular token.
The cryptocurrency trading platform also enabled spot trading for the XRP token back in March 2024, which was long after Hayes's departure.
This January, the BitMEX exchange also introduced multi-asset margining, making it possible to use the Ripple-linked token as collateral for derivatives trading.
Later this year, the trading platform also expanded its options offering with the XRP token.
In May, as reported by U.Today, BitMEX also confirmed that it would list the RLUSD stablecoin.
Dan Burgin
Vladislav Sopov
U.Today Editorial Team