According to a source, Citi will first begin trading CME bitcoin futures, followed by exchange-traded notes.

U.S. banking giant Citigroup (NYSE: C) is awaiting regulatory approval to begin trading bitcoin (BTC) futures contracts on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME), according to a source at the bank who wished to remain unnamed.

The bank is reportedly showing a surge in customer demand for access to the cryptocurrency as bitcoin rises again to $50,000. Citi, which is still working to get the necessary regulatory approvals, will join fellow mega-bank Goldman Sachs in offering bitcoin futures trading.

A second person familiar with the cryptocurrency derivatives markets said Citi is actively recruiting people to join a team specializing in cryptocurrency in London, adding:

"The team will likely get approval to start trading CME bitcoin futures and then exchange-traded notes (ETNs)."
"Given the plethora of regulatory issues, supervisory expectations and other factors, we are very careful about our approach," a Citigroup spokesperson told CoinDesk in an email. "We are currently looking at products such as futures for some of our institutional clients as they operate within a strict regulatory framework."

In January, CME topped the list of major bitcoin futures trading platforms, a sign of continued growth in institutional participation.

A growing number of large banks are venturing into cryptocurrency, often with cash-based products that track cryptocurrency prices. In July, Bank of America's primary brokerage unit began clearing and settling cryptocurrency exchange-traded products (ETPs) for hedge funds in Europe.

Citigroup, one of the largest U.S. banks, holds about $23.7 trillion in assets. In June, Citi launched a business unit offering cryptocurrency-related products under the bank's asset management umbrella. According to a May 2021 Financial Times report, Citi weighed in on cryptocurrency trading and storage.