Ethereum [ETH] Futures Delayed Further As CFTC Continues Its Review

For a while now, the Cryptocurrency enthusiasts have had their eyes set on cryptocurrency futures contracts, but somehow whether Bitcoin (BTC) futures or Ethereum (ETH futures) both have been facing opposition from the authorities on the ground of some regulatory concerns.

A recent announcement from the Commodities Futures Trading Commission [CFTC] implies that we will have to wait a little more before ETH future could be launched. In June, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission  [SEC] cleared the way for ETH futures by declaring that the token is not considered a security. However, CFTC asserted some fundamental issues with the third-largest cryptocurrency in the market, halting the process of its futures contract.

Chicago Board Options Exchange [CBOE] was waiting for CFTC’s approval over the ETH futures so that it can initiate the same by 2018 end. The CBOE ETH contracts will be based on Gemini, a cryptocurrency exchange market. However, CFTC has still hasn’t decided upon it and now announces a new plan to further seek comments from the public over Etereum.

It aims to establish a few inferences from the public and has thus listed a few questions it has about Ethereum:

1. How do the functionalities and capabilities of Ether and the Ethereum Network differ from those of Bitcoin?
2. How is the technology underlying Ethereum different from technology underlying Bitcoin?
3. How is the governance of the Ethereum Network similar to that of the Bitcoin network?
4. How could trading derivatives on Ether impact the underlying currency and the Ethereum Network?

Around six months ago, William Hinman, Director of SEC’s division of corporation finance, stated that he did not believe cryptocurrencies in its current state was a security that his agency had jurisdiction over. This raised the hope for Ethereum futures, which was further affirmed by CBOE Global Markets Inc. President, Chris Concannon, who stated that this announcement cleared a “key stumbling block for Ether futures”. However, CFTC stepped up to burst the bubble of hope by stating that Hinman’s statement was just his “personal view”.

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