The platform, overseen by the US financial regulators, is operated by ICE, which owns the New York Stock Exchange.
It can be remembered that news about ICE’s intention to establish a regulated physical Bitcoin (BTC) futures trading platform broke more than a year ago.
Since then the launch of the platform had been postponed several times due to regulatory issues.
In August, Bakkt stated that the company had received approval from the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
Notably, the CME (Chicago Mercantile Exchange) and the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) currently offers Bitcoin futures trading on cash-settlement basis.
Bakkt’s physically settled futures contract enables customers to receive Bitcoin instead of its equivalent value in fiat currency, after the contract expires.
The platform facilitates Bitcoin futures trading, with physical settlement on daily and monthly basis.
The processing of trade is carried out by Bakkt’s Bitcoin Warehouse, which started accepting deposits and withdrawal requests earlier this month.
Bakkt has also revealed that it has received a $125 million insurance policy as a protection for the crypto assets stored in the warehouse.
Physical settlement of Bitcoin futures is perceived as a major development in the crypto industry.
Tom Lee, one of the prominent crypto enthusiasts, tweeted that
“I am very positive on Bakkt and its ability to improve trust with institutions to crypto.”