Some of the world's biggest banks have pushed back against bitcoin, warning of "potential risks" just as futures trading in the digital currency is due to begin.
The Futures Industry Association, whose members include the major Wall Street and UK banks, warned of a lack of transparency over how the contracts would be regulated, as well as the unpredictability of the underlying cryptocurrency, the Daily Telegraph reported
"We remain apprehensive with the lack of transparency and regulation of the underlying reference products on which these futures contracts are based," the FIA said in an open letter to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the US market regulator.
It added that it was unsure "whether exchanges have the proper oversight to ensure the reference products are not susceptible to manipulation, fraud, and operational risk".
The Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) tomorrow will launch the first bitcoin futures market, in what is seen as a landmark moment that will help usher in the cryptocurrency's mainstream acceptance. The CBOE and Chicago Mercantile Exchange, which will launch a week later, have both won approval from the CFTC to operate under a self-certified regime.
