Bitnomial ends SEC lawsuit and launches first CFTC-regulated XRP futures

Crypto derivatives exchange Bitnomial has launched Ripple XRP futures regulated by the US Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). The Chicago-based firm announced the launch today, noting that its clients can have access to the product by March 20.

According to Bitnomial‘s announcement on X, prospective clients would have to be onboarded through any of its Futures Commission Merchants (FCM) partners, including RJ O’Brien, Marex Global, or Bitnomial Clearing, to access the product.

XRP futures contracts allow traders to bet on the asset’s future price movements and hedge against its future performance. While several offshore exchanges already offer derivatives products for XRP, this is the first time a CFTC-regulated exchange will also list contracts for the token.

The announcement coincides with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) dropping the long-running lawsuit against Ripple over the status of XRP. While there have been weeks of speculation about when the SEC filed the lawsuit, the settlement has finally kicked off an avalanche of new developments around the token.

Bitnomial initially tried to launch its XRP futures in 2024 but faced opposition from the SEC then, with the regulator claiming that it would amount to security. With the SEC’s position changed, the exchange also dropped the lawsuit against the SEC.

Over the past few weeks, the exchange has been busy with new products, listing derivatives contracts for cryptocurrencies, including Ether, Litecoin, HBAR, Polkadot, Solana, etc. One key feature of Bitnomial’s futures contract is physical settlement, which its CEO, Luke Hoersten, said ensures that the product interacts directly with underlying assets.

Hoersten said:

“Physically settled futures ensure contracts are delivered in actual crypto upon settlement, distinguishing them from cash settled alternatives that do not directly interact with the underlying asset.”

Meanwhile, the firm added that the XRP contracts would be available on another CFTC-regulated exchange, Botanical, when they launch.

XRP is up 12% as expectations of ETF approval rises

With the SEC dropping its lawsuit against Ripple, XRP saw a massive jump in price today, rising more than 12% to reach $2.57. Although it has now dropped to $2.50, expectations about what is next for XRP have increased significantly.

Many believe XRP’s chances of getting a spot exchange-traded fund (ETF) are almost certain now that the SEC has a case against it. Ripple CEO Brad Garlignhouse admitted this, noting that there are about 11 filings for XRP ETFs before the SEC currently, and he expects the regulator to approve them by the second half of the year.

Interestingly, the Ripple-SEC settlement does not affect Judge Torres’s ruling, which classifies the institutional sale of XRP as securities. There is no clarity on whether Ripple will drop its appeal challenging the $125 million fine.

Meanwhile, the positive impact of the XRP  news also moved the rest of the market, with Bitcoin gaining almost 5% to surpass $85,000 for the first time since March 9. Even ETH, which has been stuck below $2,000 for days now, finally climbed out of that rut, just as SOL and other altcoins recorded sizable gains.

Solana’s positive performance is partly due to Volatility Shares’ upcoming launch of the first-ever Solana ETFs in the US on March 20. The two futures ETFs will track SOL, with one of them being 2x.

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