An official that wishes to stay unnamed says that the US regulator is ready to approve futures on ETH

An insider has told CoinDesk that the CFTC is prepared to approve the launching of Ethereum-based futures should everything about these type of assets comply with the regulator’s requirements.

The CFTC never takes the first step

Back in late 2017, the regulator already gave its permission for launching BTC futures by CME and CBOE exchanges. Currently, the CFTC does not mind letting the same asset based on ETH go out to the open market, holding it under control. This was shared by the CFTC official who preferred not to be named.

This is due to the fact that this regulatory body does not usually initiate such announcements. The official said that they usually get an application from a company to launch certain assets they suggest. If these assets meet all the requirements of the regulator, it will be approved.

An important fact is that the CFTC only responds to applications when they are submitted and does not volunteer to grant a permission.

Possible impact of ETH futures

The head of digital asset research at fintech firm TradeBlock, John Todaro, believes that should futures contracts on Ethereum emerge in the market, it will allow institutions to get in easier, without any custody concerns. The latter has been a problem for financial institutions and has been holding them back from investing great amounts in the crypto market.

Todaro also thinks that once institutions start getting in, a wave of retail investors would follow.

This may be good for the ETH price, since it would add liquidity to Ethereum. Even though as BTC futures were launched, the Bitcoin price began to go down, Todaro believes that the start of the bearish market and the launch of the BTC futures simply coincided.

Way to gain control over the market

However, when the regulator gives its approval to launch ETH futures, it will get the chance to spread its power over the newly appeared market, believes the CEO of ErisX crypto trader.

This can be good for institutional investors that want more protection from frauds and market manipulation when they bring their money in.