According to CoinDesk, activity in the Chicago Mercantile Exchange's (CME) ether (ETH) futures surged to unprecedented levels on Tuesday, driven by the debut of spot ETH exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in the U.S. This development has significantly boosted investor interest in the second-largest cryptocurrency.

The number of active bets, or open interest, in standard ether futures hit a record 7,661 contracts, equivalent to 383,650 ETH and valued at $1.4 billion in notional terms. This surpasses the previous peak of 7,550 contracts set a month ago. Each standard contract is sized at 50 ETH. Additionally, trading volumes saw a substantial increase, with 14,736 contracts changing hands on Tuesday, tripling the average daily volume of 5,010 contracts observed in July. This made Tuesday one of the top 10 volume days for ether futures.

Giovanni Vicioso, global head of cryptocurrency products at CME Group, attributed the surge in activity to the introduction of spot ether ETFs in the U.S. He noted that the approval and subsequent trading of these ETFs have revitalized the market, leading to significant growth in volume across CME's Ether suite and resulting in record open interest for their flagship Ether futures. Vicioso emphasized that as more traders seek exposure to cryptocurrencies, CME's suite of regulated, reliable, and deeply liquid bitcoin and ether futures products continues to provide transparent tools for managing risk and capitalizing on market opportunities.

Spot ETFs hold ether, giving investors exposure to the actual cryptocurrency rather than derivatives tied to the digital asset. These ETFs are expected to attract billions of dollars in investor money in the coming months. They can be used for both directional and non-directional arbitrage bets, such as carry trades, similar to those observed in the bitcoin market. Authorized participants responsible for creating and redeeming ETF shares are also said to use regulated products like CME futures to hedge their exposure.