Robinhood is rolling out futures trading for Bitcoin and Ethereum in addition to traditional commodities like oil and gold. It teased this launch on social media, but the Chigaco Mercantile Exchange (CME) detailed its partnership with Robinhood.

The CME Group recently claimed that it has no interest in futures trading for Solana or XRP, so the partnership is unlikely to offer other cryptoassets soon.

Futures Trading on Robinhood

Robinhood, a popular trading app, is expanding into futures trading. The firm has significantly diversified its offerings in the last few months. Most recently, it joined Polymarket in offering elections betting and re-listed former assets in November.

In January, its CEO expressed interest in RWA tokenization, and it can now add futures trading to the list.

Robinhood first teased these futures trading services in a social media post, and the firm’s official website detailed a few more specifics. Shortly thereafter, the CME circulated its own press release, which revealed that these offerings came through a partnership.

“We are extremely pleased to offer some of our most popular futures contracts to the broad network of retail traders on Robinhood. Demand for futures has skyrocketed as a new generation of self-directed traders is seeking diversified investment opportunities,” said Julie Winkler, Chief Commercial Officer at CME Group.

So far, Robinhood isn’t offering futures trading for any cryptoassets other than Bitcoin or Ethereum. A week ago, statements from the CME clarified that the exchange has yet to make any decisions on offering futures contracts for Solana or XRP.

The company has offered Bitcoin futures for years, but it’s maintaining a conservative approach towards most altcoins.

Nonetheless, this is a significant development for Robinhood. The trading platform reported huge revenue gains in 2024, boasting a 114% increase in trading volume from the previous year.

By offering these futures trades, Robinhood can deepen its commitment to the growing crypto market while hedging its bets with more traditional commodities.

“Brand new revenue stream that the business has never had and should only deepen the relationships users have with the platform. I have never traded a futures contract before so my first time will be on Robinhood. Futures also requires you have margin so we could see an increase in margin balances as people enable futures,” wrote Amit, a popular tech and stock trading influencer on X (formerly Twitter).

Additionally, the firm was quite clear that these commodities futures would still benefit from the Web3 trading ethos. Low fees, round-the-clock trades, and other convenient features are typical in cryptocurrency exchanges but less so in TradFi.

Robinhood is seeking to cover its bases and ensure that this launch appeals to a broad consumer base.

Upcoming layer-1 blockchain Berachain’s pre-launch liquidity platform Boyco has officially gone live. The platform has already attracted an impressive $2.3 billion in “pre-deposits.”

Through Boyco, applications can now negotiate directly with liquidity providers.

Boyco App Kicks Off Berachain’s Mainnet Launch

Royco Protocol announced the launch of Boyco on X on January 28. Royco is a platform on Berachain that facilitates the creation of liquidity markets, allowing protocols to negotiate directly with liquidity providers to secure liquidity.

Boyco is a tailored implementation of Royco, specifically designed to support the mainnet launch of Berachain. After Boyco went live, several users complained about not being able to access the website.

“Boyco frontend lagging as hell, the FOMO is real,” wrote one user on X.

It appears that the high traffic brought the sites down.

“Yesterday evening, Boyco went live. We maxed out our servers, but even that wasn’t enough to sustain the sheer volume of traffic. Both sites became very, very slow. Since then, we’ve completely overhauled our backend, to be able to match the scale of demand,” Royco explained in a tweet. 

Moreover, the Boyco website showed that the Total Value Locked in Boyco alone is over $113 million. Once the predeposits are included, the figure rises to as high as $2.3 billion.

The supply of BERA, Berachain’s native token, on Boyco will represent 2% of the total supply.

“The community was quite surprised when the project allocated 2% of the total BERA supply to Boyco instead of the previously announced 1.5%,” said one user on X.

Boyco is designed to bridge the gap between the development of decentralized applications (DApps) and the eventual launch of their mainnet. Typically, users and investors have to wait until a blockchain’s mainnet goes live to begin interacting with its ecosystem.

However, with Boyco, applications can create liquidity markets ahead of time, providing early-stage users with an opportunity to deposit assets and generate interest. Nevertheless, another user complained that the network fee to predeposit on Boyco is ‘ridiculosly high.’

Separately, there is also much anticipation around the launch of the Berachain mainnet. Berachain is an EVM-identical layer-1 blockchain that uses a novel “proof-of-liquidity” consensus mechanism.

Rollup co-founder Andy posted on X that it could launch as early as next week.

“Berachain is launching imminently. I’ve heard early next week,” he wrote.

Berachain, with its $2.3 billion in TVL, ranks as the eighth largest chain by TVL. According to data from Dune Analytics, it has already surpassed chains like Sui, Avalanche, and Hyperliquid.

The crypto market’s recovery has not benefited all altcoins, as some continue to face sharp declines. While Bitcoin holds steady at $102,200, several altcoins remain in a downtrend, struggling to regain momentum.  

BeInCrypto has identified three altcoins that have experienced significant corrections and also formed a new all-time low.

Animecoin (ANIME)

ANIME has extended its decline less than a week after its listing, reaching a new all-time low of $0.0433. The persistent downward trend highlights weak investor confidence and limited buying pressure, keeping the altcoin vulnerable to further losses in the current market environment.

If broader market conditions remain unchanged, ANIME could continue its decline, slipping below $0.0400 and forming a new all-time low. The lack of strong support levels increases the risk of further downside, making price stabilization crucial for preventing additional sell-offs.

Currently trading at $0.0462, ANIME is attempting to reclaim $0.0553 as support. To achieve this, it must first reach $0.0497. A successful breakout above this level would invalidate the bearish outlook, potentially driving renewed buying interest and signaling the start of a recovery.

Pudgy Penguins (PENGU)

PENGU recorded a steep 28% decline in the past 24 hours, reaching a new all-time low of $0.0152 during intraday trading. This persistent bearish momentum highlights the altcoin’s struggle to find stability, leaving investors cautious about further downside risks in the short term.

This marks the third consecutive all-time low for PENGU in as many days, signaling sustained selling pressure. If investors panic and continue offloading their holdings, the drawdown could persist, potentially pushing the meme coin down to $0.0130. The lack of strong support levels adds to the uncertainty.

However, if PENGU reclaims $0.0200 as a support floor, it could shift market sentiment and spark a recovery. A move toward $0.0225 would help the altcoin recoup recent losses, potentially invalidating the bearish outlook and restoring confidence among traders.

Sonic (S) – Previously Fantom (FTM)

Sonic’s price has extended its week-long downtrend, forming new all-time lows for the past two days. The latest ATL was established at $0.4348, signaling persistent selling pressure. The altcoin’s inability to sustain support levels has contributed to its ongoing decline, raising concerns among investors about further downside risks.

Over the last 24 hours, Sonic’s price recorded a 7% recovery, bringing it to $0.4708 at the time of writing. If bearish momentum continues, the altcoin could fall further below $0.4348, potentially towards $0.4000. The lack of strong buying interest suggests that the altcoin remains vulnerable to additional losses in the near term.

For the bearish outlook to be invalidated, Sonic’s price must reclaim $0.5149 as a support level. Successfully doing so would indicate renewed buying momentum, potentially reversing recent losses and restoring investor confidence in the altcoin’s price action.