CME launches a crypto index that leaves out Bitcoin and Ethereum

CME Group and CF Benchmarks went live on August 31 with two new multi-asset cryptocurrency benchmarks, with the headline product being one that deliberately sidesteps the two biggest names in the market.

What the index tracks

The CME CF Crypto Market Index and the CME CF Emerging Crypto Index went live on August 31, 2026, shortly after 10 a.m. London time. The CME CF Emerging Crypto Index explicitly excludes Bitcoin and Ethereum, directing attention toward the next tier of digital assets. Its ten constituents are BNB ($BNB), XRP, Solana ($SOL), Hyperliquid's $HYPE, Chainlink's $LINK, Stellar, Sui, Uniswap, Avalanche and Aave ($AAVE). A companion CME CF Crypto Market Index holds those same ten assets plus Bitcoin and Ether, functioning as a broad-market gauge.

A CF Benchmarks research portfolio assigned BNB, XRP, Solana and $HYPE a combined 92.7% indicative weight, showing heavy concentration among four tokens. Both indices use free-float market capitalisation weighting, with the constituent lineup reviewed every June and December.

Benchmarks, not tradable products, for now

Neither new CME crypto index currently settles futures, ETFs or funds, meaning the benchmarks measure market performance but do not automatically create capital inflows into their constituents. Each real-time version is calculated every second, 24 hours a day, with settlement variants published once daily at 4 p.m. in London, New York and Singapore/Hong Kong.

Both indices pull from the CF Investible Universe, a standardised eligibility framework that CF Benchmarks already uses across its single-asset products. CF Benchmarks administers both indices under FCA regulation.

The door to tradable products is not closed. The emerging index's methodology says it was designed to be investible and usable for passive replication in funds and settlement of derivatives. The exchange launched Nasdaq CME Crypto Index futures in June, with those contracts financially settling to the Nasdaq CME Crypto Settlement Price Index, which tracks a separate basket of large, actively traded cryptocurrencies. That precedent suggests the new benchmarks could serve as the foundation for listed products further down the line.

Sources:
Crypto Briefing: CME launches two new cryptocurrency tracking indices with CF Benchmarks
Crypto Economy: CME Emerging Crypto Index Launches Without Bitcoin Or Ethereum
CME Group: CME Group to Launch Nasdaq CME Crypto Index Futures (press release)