Bakkt Daily and Monthly Bitcoin Futures will launch on Sept. 22 at 8 p.m. EDT. This is likely to increase volatility in Bitcoin, which has been stuck in a tight range for the past few weeks. Expectations are that Bitcoin-settled contracts and the backing of the New York Stock Exchange will attract institutional players, who have largely stayed away from making big investments in cryptocurrencies. How much of this plays out remains to be seen.
BitMEX CEO and co-founder Arthur Hayes says that 24 hours a day, seven days a week trading in cryptocurrencies will change the way people trade equities, bonds and fiat currencies. He cautioned that traders might “even lose their lunch breaks and weekends as traditional assets absorb some characteristics of digital ones.”