CME Group is turning on 24/7 crypto trading today, in a major shift for its derivatives business. Beginning May 29 at 4:00 p.m. CT, its cryptocurrency futures and options will trade continuously on the CME Globex platform, with only short maintenance pauses each week. Therefore, institutional clients can now manage crypto risk every day, instead of waiting for U.S. market hours to reopen.
According to CME, the move comes “in response to client demand” for round-the-clock access to digital asset hedging. The firm said its regulated cryptocurrency contracts will be available “24 hours a day, seven days a week beginning on May 29,” subject to regulatory oversight. Moreover, all trades executed from Friday evening through Sunday evening will clear and settle on the following business day, keeping back-office processes aligned with traditional markets.
Nine Major Crypto Futures Included
From launch, CME’s 24/7 schedule covers futures and options tied to bitcoin (BTC), ether (ETH), solana (SOL), XRP, cardano (ADA), chainlink (LINK), stellar (XLM), avalanche (AVAX), and sui (SUI). CME recently added AVAX and SUI futures to its existing altcoin roster, which already included ADA, LINK and XLM alongside its longer-running BTC, ETH, XRP and SOL contracts. Consequently, large traders can now run diversified crypto derivative strategies without pausing for weekends.
CME Group noted in its release that “client demand for risk management in the digital asset market is at an all-time high,” noting record open interest across its crypto products. The new hours match the breakneck speed of spot markets, and the exchange expects institutions to more easily fine-tune holdings around big news and price fluctuations. In addition, traders say continual activity could reduce the weekend price discrepancies that appear between CME futures and offshore markets.
The company first announced its plans to launch 24-hour trading in late 2025, when it claimed it will offer “24 hours a day, seven days a week” access to crypto futures and options in early 2026, subject regulatory review. The formal launch sees the world’s largest derivatives marketplace maintain pace with the digital assets’ always-on rhythm and keep its products within a fully regulated environment. The new timetable still includes a maintenance window of at least two hours each weekend, and systems also take short daily breaks to upgrade and complete risk checks.
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