Notably, the data released through a tweet by the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) Group also shows a steep rise in Bitcoin futures volume.
As per CME, Bitcoin (BTC) open interest surged June 17 with a record high 5,311 contracts involving 26,555 BTC, valued at roughly $248 million at the time of writing this article.
Futures, which are standardized agreements, bind a trader to buy or sell any kind of asset at a preestablished date.
Most importantly, the CME group also pointed out in its tweet that BTC futures seem to be attaining acceptance from institutional investors.
CME Bitcoin futures (BTC) shows growing signs of institutional interest. BTC open interest rose by a record 643 contracts in a single day, establishing a new all-time high of 5,311 contracts on June 17 (26,555 equivalent bitcoin; ~$250M notional). https://t.co/I6A3jD6Iq3 pic.twitter.com/ljz6EbvK79
— CMEGroup (@CMEGroup) June 18, 2019
Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou, executive at JP Morgan Chase (JPM), a major US based bank, has opined that the price of Bitcoin is progressively influenced by major financial institutions who are active participants in the financial markets. Notably, the Cboe Global markets finished its Bitcoin futures settlement yesterday at 3pm Chicago time.
Several crypto traders continue to believe that Facebook’s venture in cryptocurrency sector will propel the price of Bitcoin and other altcoins. The social media platform provider published the white paper of its native cryptocurrency (stablecoin), Libra, earlier this week. Cryptoanalyst Tom Lee has highlighted this as main reason for the mainstream interest and rally in the cryptocurrency market.