Argentina’s First Bitcoin Futures Contract Officially Goes Live

Argentina’s first bitcoin (BTC) index-based futures contract went live on Thursday, giving qualified investors exposure to crypto in a manner regulated by the local authority.

The product is based on a bitcoin index powered by Matba Rofex, the Argentinian stock exchange that published the contract’s regulations and trading guide in a statement released on Thursday.

In April, the country’s National Securities Commission (CNV) authorized the launch of the contract, arguing that it wanted to “promote the development of new and innovative products by its regulated entities in the capital market.” It is the first crypto product approved by the CNV so far.

Matba Rofex added that at first, the product will be traded only by qualified investors as defined by the CNV, and therefore the intervening agents will be responsible for the verification of that requirement.

Among the warnings about the product, Matba Rofex said that fluctuating prices of crypto assets can result in significant financial losses for users, while it also clarified that the CNV does not have control over the providers of prices for the bitcoin index.