Though planned for “early 2026,” the expansion in the CME Group’s trading services was still subject to regulatory review amid a US government shutdown with no end in sight.
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The derivatives marketplace Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) Group said it will expand its services to offer “always on” trading for crypto markets starting in 2026.
In a Thursday notice, the CME Group that, pending regulatory review, it would allow clients to trade cryptocurrency futures and options “24 hours a day, seven days a week beginning in early 2026.” The so-called “around-the-clock cryptocurrency trading” will represent a significant expansion in its services, beyond its scheduled pauses on weekends, holidays, and outside business hours.
“While not all markets lend themselves to operating 24/7, client demand for around-the-clock cryptocurrency trading has grown as market participants need to manage their risk every day of the week,” said CME Group’s global head of equities, FX, and alternative products, Tim McCourt. “Ensuring that our regulated cryptocurrency markets are always on will enable clients to trade with confidence at any time.”
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According to data from CoinMarketCap, the global crypto derivatives open interest was about $3.2 billion at the time of publication. CME Group reported a notional open interest volume of about $39 billion as of Sept. 18.
Regulatory review for the trading options refers to authority under the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), the financial agency responsible for overseeing derivatives markets. However, the CFTC is after the US Congress failed to pass a budget bill to continue to fund the government, making it highly unlikely the regulator will be able to review 24/7 trading until the shutdown ends.
At a US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and CFTC this week, CME Group CEO Terrence Duffy said “the market is going to demand” 24/7 trading soon, and crypto was the “best way to get there.”
Though many think it is highly unlikely a US government shutdown could extend into 2026 — the record is 35 days, between 2018 and 2019 — there was no proposed deal being considered at the time of publication.
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