CME will launch E-nano stock index futures on August 24 to broaden investment channels for retail investors in the four major benchmark indices

The Zhitong Finance App learned that CME Group (CME Group), the world's leading derivatives market, recently announced that it will launch E-nano stock index futures on August 24 to further expand the small contract product line. The new product is yet to be reviewed by regulation. The scale of this batch of newly launched ultra-small contracts was set at 1/10 of the micro E-mini futures, making it easy for institutional investors and retail investors to optimize their exposure allocation to mainstream stock benchmarks in the market. Customers can now trade the S&P 500, NASDAQ 100, Russell 2000, and Dow Jones Industrial Average 23 hours a day to express market views and deploy risk management strategies more accurately.

“As the stock market continues to rise to historic highs, the entry threshold for retail investors has increased, which in turn has spawned a demand for smaller contracts to improve cost efficiency and flexibility.” Tim McCourt, global head of stocks, foreign exchange and alternatives at CME, said, “E-nano stock index futures will enable customers to hedge their portfolios with unprecedented precision, and be protected by CME's reliable infrastructure and centralized liquidity throughout the process.”

Martin Franchi, CEO of NinjaTrader Group, said, “The US stock market recently experienced a historic surge, which is good news for investors; however, compared to futures, direct investment in the stock market naturally lacks certain advantages, such as capital efficiency, margin cancellation, and the opportunity to respond almost around the clock when macroeconomic events occur. The ultra-small stock futures offered by CME directly changed this situation. We think this is another important expansion to the US stock futures investment channel, and NinjaTrader is proud to introduce these new products to our community.”

JB Mackenzie, vice president of Robinhood Markets and general manager of futures and international business, said: “The launch of ultra-small stock index futures at the end of this summer is another important milestone in Robinhood's commitment to democratizing investment. As major US stock market benchmarks have climbed to historic highs, some retail traders have been excluded from existing futures products due to excessive contract prices. We are excited to partner with CME to provide customers with greater convenience in trading these benchmark indices through new contracts that are only one-tenth the size of current futures products.”

Since the launch of CME's micro E-mini futures in May 2019, the cumulative trading volume has reached close to 4.5 billion contracts. In recent years, as demand for small-scale stock index futures has grown, the trading volume and participation of this series of products have continued to reach record highs, including:

Micro E-mini Nasdaq 100 Index Futures - The average daily trading volume in June set a monthly record of 3.2 million contracts

Micro E-mini S&P 500 Index Futures - The average daily trading volume in the first quarter set a quarterly record of 1.5 million contracts