XRP Futures: It’s Complicated (Seriously)

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So, BitMEX – you know, one of those places where people trade digital whatchamacallits – has decided to add some new… things. Quarterly futures contracts, they’re called. And, yes, XRP is involved. 🙄 Because of course it is. It wouldn’t be a proper Tuesday in the crypto world without another new financial instrument nobody fully understands.

These new “things” apparently went live this Tuesday. A Tuesday! Like anyone was holding their breath.

Quarterly futures, explained (sort of)

The idea, as far as I can gather, is that you can trade the idea of XRP without actually, you know, possessing any actual XRP. It’s a bit like betting on a horse race without going to the races. Or owning a horse. Or even knowing what a horse is. 🤔

Now, unlike those *perpetual swaps* (which sound suspiciously like something out of Star Trek and also never end – alarming!), these quarterly futures have an expiry date. A date! They actually stop! Traders use them for… arbitrage and hedging. Which, again, sounds impressive, but mostly involves moving money around in a way that makes someone, somewhere, very rich.

For example, there’s the XRPZ25 contract. Launched September 9th. It will expire, and settle based on the XRP spot price on December 26th. Which feels very specific. Almost… ominous. And then there’s XRPU25. Launched in June. Expiring September 26th. It’s a whirlwind of dates and letters, honestly.

BitMEX’s XRP Obsession

They introduced perpetual futures for XRP back in 2020. So, they’ve been at this for a while. And in March 2024, they allowed you to actually buy the stuff. Genuine spot trading! Imagine that. 🤯

Then, in January, they came up with “multi-asset margining” which basically means you can use your XRP as collateral for other, equally confusing, trades. It’s a financial house of cards, really. And just to keep things interesting, they expanded their options offering with XRP later this year. Because why not? 🤷

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2025-09-09 09:02