Gabor Gubacs Confirms Nasdaq Bitcoin Futures Rumor

Information reaching Ethereum World News earlier today alluded to the rumor that Nasdaq, one of the world’s largest financial markets, has begun work on an in-house Bitcoin (BTC) futures contract. Although this is arguably a bullish development, at the time of the breaking Bloomberg report, the information was divulged by two supposedly familiar with the matter.

To clear the air, Gabor Gubacs, a digital asset strategist/head at VanEck (the firm behind the leading Bitcoin ETF proposal), took to the stage of CoinDesk’s Consensus Invest, issuing a comment on the news.

Big announcement on-stage at #ConsensusInvest: @gaborgurbacs reveals that VanEck is partnering with Nasdaq to "bring a regulated crypto 2.0 futures-type contract" to the market. — CoinDesk (@CoinDesk) November 27, 2018

Per CoinDesk’s Twitter channel, on-stage, in front of a crowd of hundreds, Gurbacs revealed that VanEck is partnering with New York-based Nasdaq to “bring a regulated crypto 2.0 futures-type contract” to market.

However, like Bloomberg’s original statement on the matter, not many details were divulged regarding VanEck and Nasdaq’s collaborative efforts, potentially indicating that there could be ground-breaking features kept under lock and key.

And due to the apparent secrecy, many quickly resorted to speculation, with some questioning if Nasdaq’s instrument would make use of ‘physical’ BTC in custody, unlike CBOE and CME’s futures, but like Bakkt’s vehicle slated to launch in late-January. Then again, it isn’t clear if Nasdaq has plans to implement such a program, which complicates Bitcoin futures contracts, but seeing that the exchange is relatively blockchain- and crypto-friendly, physical backing, classified as a positive Bitcoin price catalyst, isn’t out of the realm of possibility.

Bloomberg noted that the America-centric platform is planning to embark on its first notable crypto foray by Q1 of 2019, pending a green light from the U.S. CFTC.

Despite Crypto Bear Market, Institutions Push Ahead

Interestingly, this strong institutional foray comes amid bearish market conditions, which has seen the aggregate value of crypto assets collapse by $100 billion (40%) in the past two and a half weeks. This doesn’t only indicate that there’s still room for crypto assets to grow, but there are likely investors waiting on the sidelines for the right vehicle, product, platform, or service.

Ambrosus CEO, Angel Versetti, recently spoke with the Independent U.K. on this subject, as reported by Ethereum World News previously.

Versetti noted that he “doesn’t believe [that] we are, or were, anywhere close to a bubble with cryptocurrency.” The CEO of the blockchain upstart then added that the arrival of hotshot institutional players, who he dubbed “bankers” and “financiers,” indicates that the industry’s first bonafide bubble is on the horizon, and could even be in the making as he made his statement.

This worldview wasn’t confined to just one industry savant, as others, including Bitpay’s Sonny Singh, also touched on the importance of institutional forays into this nascent industry. Speaking with Bloomberg, Singh explained that products like a regulated U.S.-based ETF, Bakkt’s fully-fledged platform, and other promising ventures will push bitcoin over $15,000 and possibly $20,000 during the fiscal year of 2019.

Title Image Courtesy of Colton Duke on Unsplash