CME Group, the world's leading derivatives marketplace, has confirmed the debut of Ethereum futures contracts ahead of the recent rally in the price of Ether fueled by the upcoming Merge.

In an announcement Wednesday, the CME Group which consists of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, Chicago Board of Trade, New York Mercantile Exchange, and the Commodity Exchange stated that it will allow Ether futures trading from Sept. 12 after the completion of regulatory review.

"The launch of these new options contracts builds on the significant growth and deep liquidity we have seen in our existing Ether futures, which have traded more than 1.8 million contracts to date," said Tim McCourt, Global Head of Equity and FX Products, CME Group.

The new Ethereum contracts will have a size of 50 ETH and will join the list of current crypto derivates that the marketplace supports which include the Micro Bitcoin options and Micro Ethereum options (sized at 10% of a BTC or ETH token, respectively) along with Bitcoin futures sized at 5 BTC per contract.

The previously issued Ethereum options contracts "have experienced tremendous growth and continue to provide consistent liquidity, volume, and open interest for clients," CME Group confirmed in the announcement. It also revealed that the open interest for micro-Ethereum futures surged by 34% between Q1 and Q2 of 2022.

"As we approach the highly anticipated Ethereum Merge next month, we continue to see market participants turn to CME Group to manage ether price risk. Our new Ether options will offer a wide array of clients greater flexibility and added precision to manage their ether exposure ahead of market moving events," McCourt said.

Ethereum is undergoing a highly anticipated event called the Ethereum Merge which will market the transition of Ether from being a proof-of-work-based blockchain to a proof-of-stake-based blockchain.

Analysts believe that the Merge has the potential to recast Ether as a global institutional-grade asset.

Hackers linked to North Korea are responsible for the March 2022 theft of $620 million in ethereum, a type of cryptocurrency
Hackers linked to North Korea are responsible for the March 2022 theft of $620 million in ethereum, a type of cryptocurrency AFP / INA FASSBENDER
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