CME Group, the world’s largest futures exchange, is planning to launch bitcoin trading, aiming to capitalise on surging demand this year among Wall Street money managers to gain exposure to the cryptocurrency sector. The Chicago-based group has been holding discussions with traders who want to buy and sell the cryptocurrency on a regulated marketplace, according to three people with direct knowledge of the talks.
Hedge funds, including Bracebridge Capital, and pension funds, such as Wisconsin Investment Board, are among the large investors that have poured more than $10bn of assets into vehicles run by asset managers including BlackRock, Fidelity and Ark. In March, Larry Fink, chief executive of BlackRock, said he was “long-term bullish” on bitcoin.