KuCoin’s derivatives platform launching bitcoin monthly futures in ‘few weeks’

Bitcoin • October 17, 2019, 3:35AM EDT
UPDATED: October 17, 2019, 3:41AM EDT
KuCoin

Cryptocurrency exchange KuCoin’s derivatives platform, KuMEX, is going to launch bitcoin monthly futures contracts in a “few weeks.”

Michael Gan, founder and CEO of KuCoin, announced the news at the Blockchain Life 2019 Forum in Moscow, Russia, according to a press release shared with The Block on Wednesday.

IDG Capital-backed KuCoin launched KuMEX in July, and already offers a bitcoin perpetual contract (XBTUSDM), which is quoted in U.S. dollars and offers up to 20 times leverage.

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Gan said at the forum that the current low penetration rate of derivatives in the cryptocurrency space is because major exchanges such as OKEx and Huobi often set certain investment thresholds. For instance, the two exchanges’ minimum bitcoin contract value is $100. However, to increase retail participation, the limit has to be reduced and that’s why KuMEX’s XBTUSDM contract value is $1, he said.

KuMEX platform currently supports English, simplified Chinese and Russian languages. Gan further said that the platform will support more languages, such as Vietnamese and Turkish, later this year.

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Yogita Khatri is a senior reporter at The Block, covering all things crypto. As one of the earliest team members, Yogita has played a pivotal role in breaking numerous stories, exclusives and scoops. With nearly 3,000 articles under her belt, Yogita holds the records as The Block's most-published and most-read author of all time. Prior to joining The Block, Yogita worked at crypto publication CoinDesk and The Economic Times, where she wrote on personal finance. To contact her, email: [email protected]. For her latest work, follow her on X @Yogita_Khatri5.