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☆ Cryptoverse: Winter is coming as ether funds flounder in fall
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-17 | by ( Lisa Pauline Mattackal | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

"The timing of the futures ETFs could hardly be worse," said Vetle Lunde, senior analyst at K33 Research. Trading volumes for the ether futures ETFs remained below $2 million on their first day, according to K33 Research. Trading volumes of six exchange-traded funds tracking ether made a subdued start after launching on Oct. 2BACK TO BITCOIN? The newly launched ETFs tracking solely ether futures on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, from ProShares (EETH.P), VanEck and Bitwise (AETH.P), have all dipped over 6% since launch. ProShares and Bitwise also launched funds tracking a mixture of bitcoin and ether futures, while Valkyrie Funds converted its pure-play bitcoin ETF into one with exposure to both bitcoin and ether (BTF.O).

Persons: Bitcoin, Dado, Vetle Lunde, murkier, Lunde, Ben McMillan, McMillan, Bitwise, IDX, Lisa Pauline Mattackal, Sumanta Sen, Tom Wilson, Pravin Organizations: REUTERS, K33 Research, IDX, Federal, Chicago Mercantile Exchange, Thomson, Reuters Locations: Ukraine, ProShares, Bengaluru

☆ Analysis: Use of weather derivatives surges as extreme climate events rock the globe
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-11 | by ( Harry Robertson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Weather derivatives were born in the late 1990s. Climate change and the El Nino weather phenomenon combined to make the northern hemisphere summer of 2023 the hottest ever recorded, according to the European Union Climate Change Service. Weather derivatives let buyers hedge against the risk that the weather will damage their business. Average open interest in CME weather futures and options contracts in September was around 170,000 contracts, compared to roughly 10 times that for crude oil - although market participants reckon 90% of the weather derivatives market is in over-the-counter deals. "Extreme weather events tend to make good marketing for weather futures," said Samuel Randalls, a professor at University College London who focuses on weather and climate.

Persons: Andrew ., Ken Griffin's, Peter Keavey, Griffin's Citadel, Nick Ernst, Ernst, Matthew Hunt, Samuel Randalls, David Whitehead, Whitehead, UCL's Randalls, BGC's Ernst, Martin Malinow, Harry Robertson, Emelia Sithole Organizations: NYPD, REUTERS, Energy, Chicago Mercantile Exchange, Enron, CME Group, El, Change, Graphics, University College London, Citadel, Thomson Locations: Manhattan, Williamsburg, New York City, U.S, Paris, New York, Ukraine

☆ Use of weather derivatives surges as extreme climate events rock the globe
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-11 | by ( Harry Robertson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

☆ VanEck launches ETF tied to ether futures
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Oct 2 (Reuters) - VanEck on Monday launched VanEck Ethereum Strategy ETF , becoming one of the first U.S. investment managers to bring a futures-based exchange traded fund (ETF) tied to the world's second-largest cryptocurrency ether to the market. The newly launched fund will be investing in ether futures focused solely on those traded on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, the fund manager said. "EFUT is positioned to gather assets from those investors wanting to tap into this slice of the crypto market." ProShares, Bitwise and Invesco have also filed to list a variety of ETFs tied to ether, that are expected to launch later in the day, according to traders and media reports. Reporting by Bansari Mayur Kamdar in Bengaluru; Editing by Shweta AgarwalOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Todd Rosenbluth, Bansari Mayur, Shweta Agarwal Organizations: Chicago Mercantile Exchange, Thomson Locations: Bengaluru

☆ How Wall Street makes money by predicting the Fed’s decisions
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-20 | by ( Elisabeth Buchwald | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

There, you will find a bar chart plotting the share of traders predicting a rate hike, cut or no change in interest rates at an upcoming meeting. Traders’ actions translate into interest rate decision probabilitiesWhen the Fed changes interest rates it’s actually changing what’s known as the federal funds rate target range. The federal funds rate is the interest rate banks charge each other to borrow money, and it impacts the interest rate consumers pay for a variety of loans, including some mortgages. But it wasn’t until 2013 that the CME Group launched the FedWatch tool, giving everyone access to the information without having to do complex calculations. Why the FedWatch Tool is so closely followedThe Fed’s interest rate decisions can have serious implications for your investments.

Persons: that’s, Jerome Powell, ” Powell, Agha Mirza, Mirza, ”, FedWatch, ” Mirza, Alex McGrath, Ben Bernanke, Ken Kuttner, Powell’s Jackson, Dow, Greg Daco, Daco, McGrath, ” McGrath Organizations: New, New York CNN, Federal, Chicago Mercantile Exchange, CME Group, CNN, Fed, Index, “ Investors, Williams College Locations: New York, EY

☆ Grayscale urges U.S. SEC to approve spot bitcoin ETF following court victory
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-05 | by ( Michelle Price | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The ruling requires the SEC to review Grayscale's application, although the agency still has time to appeal the court's decision. A spot bitcoin ETF would give investors exposure to the world's largest cryptocurrency without having to own it. The SEC has denied all spot bitcoin ETF applications, saying applicants have not shown they can protect investors from market manipulation. Grayscale argued the same setup should be satisfactory for its spot ETF, since both products rely on bitcoin's underlying price. The appeals court ruled that the SEC arbitrarily denied Grayscale's application because it never explained why the two arrangements were materially different.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Grayscale's, DavisPolk, Michelle Price, Tomasz Janowski Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, SEC, District of Columbia, Chicago Mercantile Exchange, Thomson Locations: Washington

☆ Analysis-Grayscale victory big boost for decade-long spot bitcoin ETF push
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-30 | by ( Hannah Lang | Chris Prentice | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

FILE PHOTO: Representations of cryptocurrency Bitcoin are placed on a PC motherboard, in this illustration taken June 16, 2023. A spot bitcoin ETF would give investors exposure to the world’s largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization without having to own it. The SEC has denied all spot bitcoin ETF applications, saying applicants have not shown they can protect investors from market manipulation. Grayscale argued the same setup should be satisfactory for its spot ETF, since both products rely on bitcoin’s underlying price. Other firms have spot bitcoin ETF applications with the SEC, including asset management giant BlackRock, Fidelity and WisdomTree.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Grayscale’s, It’s, ”, Christopher LaVigne, Withers, “, Michael Sonnenshein, Bitcoin, Sui Chung, Joseph Toner, Seth Hertlein, Ryan Louvar, Paul Grewal, ” Coinbase, Withers ’ LaVigne Organizations: WASHINGTON, REUTERS, District of Columbia, Securities and Exchange Commission, SEC, CNBC, Chicago Mercantile Exchange, Fidelity, Coinbase, BlackRock, Supreme Locations: Washington, New York, WilmerHale, BlackRock

Representations of cryptocurrency Bitcoin are placed on a PC motherboard, in this illustration taken June 16, 2023. A spot bitcoin ETF would give investors exposure to the world's largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization without having to own it. The SEC has denied all spot bitcoin ETF applications, saying applicants have not shown they can protect investors from market manipulation. Grayscale argued the same setup should be satisfactory for its spot ETF, since both products rely on bitcoin's underlying price. Other firms have spot bitcoin ETF applications with the SEC, including asset management giant BlackRock (BLK.N), Fidelity and WisdomTree (WT.N).

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Grayscale's, It's, Christopher LaVigne, Withers, Michael Sonnenshein, Bitcoin, Sui Chung, Joseph Toner, Seth Hertlein, Ryan Louvar, Paul Grewal, Coinbase, LaVigne, Carolina Mandl, Tom Wilson, Michelle Price, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, District of Columbia, Securities and Exchange Commission, SEC, CNBC, Chicago Mercantile Exchange, Fidelity, Coinbase, CME, BlackRock, Supreme, Thomson Locations: Washington, New York, WilmerHale, London

The case has been closely watched by the cryptocurrency and asset management industries, which have been trying for years to convince the SEC to approve a spot bitcoin ETF. While the agency has rejected spot bitcoin ETFs, it has approved bitcoin futures ETFs, which track agreements to buy or sell bitcoin at a pre-agreed price. Grayscale argued that the bitcoin futures ETF surveillance arrangements should also be satisfactory for Grayscale's spot ETF, since both products rely on bitcoin's underlying price. Bitcoin futures ETFs track bitcoin futures that trade on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME), the chief venue for those products. The court's panel of judges said Grayscale showed that its proposed bitcoin ETF is "materially similar" to the approved bitcoin futures ETFs.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Grayscale's, Donald Verrilli Jr, Hannah Lang, Michelle Price, Nick Zieminski Organizations: REUTERS, U.S, District of Columbia, Securities and Exchange Commission, SEC, New York Stock, Arca, Chicago Mercantile Exchange, CME, bitcoin, Supreme, Nasdaq, BlackRock, Fidelity, Thomson Locations: bitcoin, U.S, Washington

☆ Mexico's 'super peso' keeps gaining, but exports will likely suffer
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-22 | by ( Noe Torres | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The Mexican peso is among the top-performing currencies this year with a 12% surge against the U.S. dollar, after closing last year up about 5%. But the Mexican currency's recent strengthening to about 17 pesos per U.S. dollar, from 19.50 pesos per greenback last December, makes Mexican exports more expensive. In fact, Banco Base sees remittances loosing more than 10% of their spending power if the peso-to-dollar exchange rate holds steady. Mexico's peso is among the world's most liquid currencies since the country adopted a free-floating exchange rate in 1994. Bets for an even stronger peso on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange have grown since March.

Persons: Guillermo Mateos, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, Jonathan Zuloaga, Noe Torres, Valentine Hilaire, David Alire Garcia, Diane Craft Organizations: MEXICO CITY, U.S, U.S ., Banco Base, Chicago Mercantile Exchange, Thomson Locations: MEXICO, Columbus de Mexico

☆ Crypto crackdown: Is there anywhere safe left for crypto investors in the US?
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-06 | by ( Allison Morrow | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

“Look, we don’t need more digital currency,” Gensler told CNBC on Tuesday. “We already have digital currency: It’s called the US dollar. Many crypto investors appear to be abandoning so-called “alt-coins” and sticking with the relatively more reliable OG virtual currency, wrote Ed Moya, a senior market analyst with Oanda. Bottom line: “The SEC looks like it is playing Whac-A-Mole with crypto exchanges,” Moya wrote. Because of that, crypto investors will have to decide whether they are confident that the offerings on various exchanges will remain available to trade.

Persons: CNN Business ’, Binance, ”, Matt Levine, I’ll, Coinbase, Brian Armstrong, Gary Gensler, ” Gensler, “, It’s, Crypto, TD Cowen, Reena Aggarwal, Aggarwal, bitcoin, Ed Moya, ” Moya, —, you’ll Organizations: CNN Business, New York CNN, Securities and Exchange Commission, SEC, CNBC, Georgetown, Psaros, Financial Markets, Chicago Mercantile Exchange, Oanda Locations: New York, United States, “, cryptos

☆ Mexican peso to stay strong despite end of central bank tightening cycle, analysts say
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-19 | by ( Noe Torres | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MEXICO CITY, May 19 (Reuters) - The Mexican peso could remain the top performer among major global currencies in the coming weeks, despite Mexico's central bank choosing to halt a nearly two-year rate-hike cycle, analysts said. The Mexican peso has gained nearly 10% so far this year, driven mainly by the dollar's decline and money entering the country since the central bank started hiking interest rates in June 2021. Reuters GraphicsIn the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, seen as a market bellwether, speculators on different types of assets have been increasingly betting that the Mexican currency will keep appreciating. These positions, anticipating further strengthening of the peso since mid-March, reached 70,007 contracts in favor of the currency last week, a level not seen since March 2020. Considering these factors, Mexican economists expect the peso to weaken to 19.13 by year-end, a survey by the central bank showed, while a poll of Citibanamex experts estimated the figure at 19.20.

Bitcoin futures ETFs track bitcoin futures contracts, or agreements to purchase or sell bitcoin at a certain price on a specified date. A spot bitcoin ETF would track bitcoin's underlying market price. Proponents say a spot bitcoin ETF would give investors exposure to bitcoin without directly buying it. He told Reuters in January that Grayscale would appeal the case if the court backed the SEC's decision to reject its bitcoin ETF proposal. Grayscale Bitcoin Trust, launched in 2013, has $14 billion in assets under management, according to Grayscale’s website.

Bitcoin futures ETFs track bitcoin futures contracts, or agreements to purchase or sell bitcoin at a certain price on a specified date. A spot bitcoin ETF would track bitcoin's underlying market price. Proponents say a spot bitcoin ETF would enable investors to gain exposure to bitcoin without directly buying it. The agency has denied more than a dozen spot bitcoin ETF applications, all of which it said lacked surveillance-sharing agreements to detect potential manipulation. Grayscale Bitcoin Trust, launched in 2013, has $14 billion in assets under management, according to Grayscale’s website.

Two-year Treasury yields hit their highest in three months at 4.65%, now on par with the current Fed policy rate. Morgan Stanley's Matthew Hornbach described the payrolls as a "mood changing" print that's seen markets chase rates higher as if gripped by a sort of reverse FOMO - fear of missing out. Reports circulated last week of swaps and options market activity on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange that bet on market rates touching 6%, or at least hedging against that possibility. If that's true, the battle over the terminal rate may now be overtaken by how long the Fed can keep rates higher to achieve its goals. BofA chart on peak rates from fund manager surveyInflationThe opinions expressed here are those of the author, a columnist for Reuters.

☆ Investors anxiously await jobs report for clues about Fed rate hikes
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-05 | by ( Paul R. La Monica | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Traders are betting on a further deceleration in jobs growth because that could lead to a reduction in the size of interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve. Further strength could set off more alarm bells about inflation and Fed rate hikes. Focus on worker payWall Street will also need to dive even deeper into Friday’s jobs report to get a better sense of what’s happening in the economy. Investors cheered the fact that wage growth, measured by average hourly earnings, rose only 4.7% over the previous 12 months in October. Big Tech keeps handing out pink slipsOverall, the jobs market is still in good shape.

☆ Analysis: Is the party over? Mexico's peso could lose solid gains in 2023
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-29 | by ( Noe Torres | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MEXICO CITY, Dec 29 (Reuters) - Mexico's peso, which is ending 2022 with one of its strongest performances in a decade, could have its gains wiped out in 2023 after an expected end to the Bank of Mexico's rate hikes cycle and a possible recession in top trade partner the United States. "The carry trade, the phenomenon that has benefited (the peso) this year, will likely dissipate a bit," said CI Banco analyst James Salazar. The carry trade refers to a trading strategy of taking advantage of yield differences between Mexico and other economies. Traders at the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, considered a bellwether of market sentiment, have started to bet the peso will begin depreciating. Reporting by Noe Torres; Writing by Anthony Esposito; Editing by Josie KaoOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ EU gas price cap will be self-defeating
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MILAN, Dec 16 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Setting a ceiling on the price of European gas would do more harm than good. European Union energy ministers will meet on Monday to try and agree on the cap, which backers believe will prevent gas prices from spiralling out of control. Under the latest proposal, the cap may be set at 220 euros per megawatt hour for the most liquid future contracts exchanged at the Dutch Title Transfer Facility, Europe’s gas benchmark. The Intercontinental Exchange, which handles the majority of TTF future contracts, believes the additional cost would be $47 billion. Traders could even opt to buy TTF contracts on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange.

☆ The Fed will raise rates again. But it’s playing with fire
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-11 | by ( Paul R. La Monica | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

New York CNN —The Federal Reserve is all but guaranteed to announce Wednesday that it will once again raise interest rates. The Fed bumped up rates by three-quarters of a percentage point in the past four meetings (June, July, September and November). The more widely watched Consumer Price Index data for November comes out Tuesday, just a day before the Fed announcement. Jones still thinks the Fed will raise rates by only half a point this week and may look to hike them just a quarter point in early 2023. It seems likely that the Fed will cut its GDP target and raise its expectations for the jobless rate and consumer prices.

That puts Hong Kong in a league of its own. The competitive tension between Hong Kong and Singapore is greater than ever. The danger is that Hong Kong’s new embrace of virtual assets will set up a regulatory race to the bottom, even if FTX’s collapse means it might happen at a slower pace. The policy statement notes that retail investors in other markets have been granted exposure to virtual assets including through exchange-traded products. Column by Thomas Shum in Hong Kong, Pranav Kiran in Bengaluru.

☆ A legendary options trader who banked 70 consecutive months of profits above 6 figures shares the spread he would use in the current stock market environment and explains why it's optimal
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-19 | by ( Laila Maidan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

In the current stock market, Tony Saliba says he would trade bull call spreads. Options trading grabbed the then 23-year-old's attention because it had nonlinear payout opportunities. His cautious approach to options trading came from a lesson learned early on when he blew up his trading account. Many people may be bearish on the stock market. Initial Investment Profit Potential when Stock at $170 Risk exposure Trading 100 shares of CVX Stock $16,000 $1,000 (6.25%) $16,000 (or $1600 with a 10% stop loss) Trading CVX spread $1,760 $2,240 (127%) $1,760On October 13, CVX stock reached $165 and the spread went up to about $5.50.

Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterThe SEC has rejected over a dozen spot bitcoin ETF applications, and approved several bitcoin futures-based ETFs. The rejections have focused on applicants' lack of surveillance-sharing agreements with regulated markets relating to the spot funds' underlying assets. Grayscale argued in the court filing that the SEC had not applied its standards evenly to spot bitcoin ETFs and bitcoin futures-based ETFs, even though both types of funds are both fundamentally tied to the price of bitcoin. There is no spot bitcoin market that the SEC considers to be regulated, Grayscale said. Since the SEC deemed other agreements with CME sufficient to prevent fraud in bitcoin futures-based ETFs, the same should apply to bitcoin spot ETFs since both types of fund rely on the price of bitcoin, Grayscale said.

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