[Analysis] "Gold and silver now trade on crypto exchanges…surge in perpetual futures for traditional assets"

An analysis suggests that crypto (cryptocurrency) exchanges are expanding into traditional finance (TradFi) derivatives venues.

On the 6th (Korean time), crypto analytics firm CryptoQuant said in a report that "Binance’s perpetual futures for traditional assets have surpassed $130 billion in cumulative trading volume since launch, with the number of trades reaching 90 million," adding that "this is an achievement delivered in roughly two months after launch."

Perpetual futures for traditional assets are derivatives that track the prices not only of precious metals such as gold, silver, palladium and platinum, but also major stocks including Amazon, Coinbase, Intel, Strategy and Tesla. A key feature is that, while providing price exposure similar to traditional derivatives, they can leverage the infrastructure of crypto exchanges that enables 24-hour global trading.

Gold and silver stood out in particular. The report said that "over the past three days, gold and silver derivatives posted volumes of about $3.77 billion and $3.75 billion, respectively, and on the 1st—when volatility in these markets was high—$4.0 billion of gold and $7.0 billion of silver were traded, respectively."

It added that "demand for safe-haven assets has risen amid concerns over a global economic slowdown, geopolitical risks, and expanded gold purchases by central banks."

The report said this trend reflects demand for 24-hour settlement. "Investors seeking exposure to traditional assets such as gold or equities are using crypto-exchange infrastructure that allows 24-hour trading," it said, adding that "this shows a convergence between crypto assets and traditional finance."