CME Group Expands Digital Asset Derivatives with Avalanche and Sui Futures

CME Group's expansion into high-throughput Layer-1 blockchain sector is a strategic move to cater to growing demand for digital assets.

The introduction of Avalanche (AVAX and Micro AVAX) and Sui (SUI and Micro SUI) futures contracts builds upon the prior introduction of Cardano, Chainlink, and Stellar futures contracts in February 2026. These derivatives settle in cash against their respective CME CF Reference Rates, allowing market participants to diversify their digital asset holdings beyond traditional benchmarks like bitcoin and ether.

Avalanche operates as a high-performance Layer-1 protocol designed to offer fast finality and scalability while preserving network decentralization. Sui functions as a fast, scalable Layer-1 blockchain that harnesses the Move programming language. Both networks utilize their native tokens for infrastructure operations, with AVAX primarily used for staking purposes and maintaining overall network security, and SUI used to settle gas fees within high-frequency on-chain transaction environments.

The launch of Avalanche and Sui derivatives follows sustained volume growth across the existing digital asset product suite. Average daily open interest reached 313.9K contracts in the first quarter of 2026, marking a 25% increase compared to the same period in 2025. The trading data reflects transaction volumes across established crypto asset products alongside newly introduced altcoin derivatives.