CME Group, the world’s leading derivatives marketplace, announced plans to expand its smaller-sized contract suite with the launch of E-nano equity index futures on August 24, pending regulatory review.

At one-tenth the size of Micro E-mini futures, these new nano-sized contracts are designed to enable institutional and retail investors to optimize exposure to the market’s leading equity benchmarks. Clients can express views on the S&P 500, Nasdaq-100, Russell 2000 and Dow Jones Industrial Average 23 hours per day, with additional precision for risk management strategies.

“As equity markets continue to reach all-time highs, the barrier to entry has increased for retail investors, creating a need for even smaller contracts that deliver cost efficiency and enhanced flexibility,” said Tim McCourt, Global Head of Equities, FX and Alternative Products at CME Group. “E-nano equity index futures will enable our clients to hedge their portfolios with an unprecedented level of granularity, all within the trusted infrastructure and centralized liquidity that is available from CME Group.”

“U.S. equity markets have been on a historic run, and that’s great news for investors; however, they’re operating without the benefits that futures uniquely provide, such as capital efficiency, margin offsets and nearly 23-hour access to trade macro events as they unfold,” said Martin Franchi, CEO, NinjaTrader Group. “Nano-sized equity futures through CME Group change that calculus. We see this as another significant expansion of access to U.S. equity futures, and NinjaTrader is proud to bring it to our community.”

“Launching nano-sized equity index futures later this summer is another key milestone in Robinhood’s mission to democratize access for all,” said JB Mackenzie, VP and GM of Futures and Prediction Markets at Robinhood. “As major US equity benchmarks climb to historic highs, some retail traders are being priced out of existing futures products. We’re excited to work with CME Group to make it even easier for customers to trade these benchmarks with contracts that are one tenth the size of what’s available today.”

Since launching in May 2019, approximately 4.5 billion Micro E-mini futures have traded at CME Group. With demand for smaller-sized equity index futures growing in recent years, the complex is seeing record levels of volume and participation, including:

• Micro E-mini Nasdaq-100 futures – record monthly ADV of 3.2 million contracts in June

• Micro E-mini S&P 500 futures – record quarterly ADV of 1.5 million contracts in Q1

E-nano equity index futures will be listed on and subject to the rules of CME and CBOT. For more information on these products, please visit cmegroup.com/enano.

Source: CME