Nasdaq Clears Hurdle with SEC Approval for Bitcoin Index Options

The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has given its approval for Nasdaq to list options tied directly to the CME CF Bitcoin Real Time Index. This move opens a new route for stock-market traders to bet on Bitcoin, widening their menu of tools in the United States.

The contracts will trade on Nasdaq PHLX under the ticker QBTC and are cash-settled, European-style options, meaning traders settle gains and losses in dollars and can exercise only at expiration. This limits the chance of early assignment, a key feature that differentiates these options from spot Bitcoin ETFs.

The approval comes as part of a broader push by SEC Chairman Paul Atkins to bring crypto activity into the regulated US financial system. Atkins has warned that failing to address new technology forces it offshore, citing the collapse of FTX in 2022.

Nasdaq's head of U.S. options, David Barrett, called the decision an important step in expanding regulated and transparent access to digital asset derivatives. However, trading cannot begin right away as the contracts still need clearance from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission before they reach the market.