CF Benchmarks
Crypto Asset Deep Dives
Blog Posts
XRP: Powering Global Liquidity in Real TimeXRP is a leading, mega-cap token, offering rapid cross-border payments with 3-5 second settlement times. Even a small 3.9% allocation enhances portfolio efficiency, providing diversification through moderate correlations with other cryptos and an asymmetric risk-reward profile.
Gabriel Selby
Gabriel Selby
1 mins read
Gabriel Selby
Gabriel Selby
3 mins read
Growth and Momentum Outperform in Turbulent Q1The CF Benchmarks' Factor Report applies a robust multi-factor model to digital assets, enabling investors to track key drivers of crypto returns (Market, Size, Value, Momentum, Growth, Downside Beta, and Liquidity) and understand how these factors evolve across different market regimes.
Gabriel Selby
Gabriel Selby
3 mins read
Gabriel Selby
Gabriel Selby
3 mins read
Gabriel Selby
Gabriel Selby
2 mins read
Suitability Analysis of the CME CF Solana-Dollar Reference Rate as a Basis for Regulated Financial Products - March 2025 UpdateA benchmark must be representative of the underlying market, resistant to manipulation, and replicable by market participants. This paper seeks to understand whether these qualities are achieved by CF Benchmarks' CME CF Solana-Dollar Reference Rate (SOLUSD_RR).
CF Benchmarks
CF Benchmarks
13 mins read
Suitability Analysis of the CME CF Bitcoin Reference Rate – New York Variant as a Basis for Regulated Financial Products - March 2025 UpdateA benchmark must be representative of the underlying market, resistant to manipulation, and replicable by market participants. This paper seeks to understand how well these qualities are being achieved by the regulated CME CF Bitcoin Reference Rate – New York Variant (BRRNY).
CF Benchmarks
CF Benchmarks
13 mins read
Gabriel Selby
Gabriel Selby
8 mins read
Gabriel Selby
Gabriel Selby
3 mins read
Gabriel Selby
Gabriel Selby
2 mins read
Gabriel Selby
Gabriel Selby
3 mins read
CF Benchmarks
CF Benchmarks
13 mins read
Gabriel Selby
Gabriel Selby
6 mins read
Gabriel Selby
Gabriel Selby
3 mins read
Gabriel Selby
Gabriel Selby
2 mins read
Introducing CF Benchmarks’ Risk and Reward Framework for Ethereum Staking ReturnsCF Benchmarks has deployed its proven expertise in defining and quantifying the blockchain economy towards providing the most thorough and unbiased assessment of the potential rewards and inherent risks involved in Ethereum staking available.
Ken Odeluga
Ken Odeluga
3 mins read
Democratizing Institutional-Grade Derivatives through Bitcoin Friday FuturesBFF offers a regulated, cost-efficient alternative to perpetual futures, eliminating funding rates and enhancing market integrity. Built on CF Benchmarks' BRRNY, it bridges institutional and retail trading, further paving the way for Bitcoin's financial integration.
Gabriel Selby
Gabriel Selby
7 mins read
Gabriel Selby
Gabriel Selby
3 mins read
CF Benchmarks
CF Benchmarks
12 mins read
Market Outlook: Q4 2024As we approach year-end, digital assets are at a turning point. November’s elections could redefine regulation, while Ethereum's scaling solutions promise to revolutionize finance. Asset tokenization and decentralized networks stand ready to disrupt existing systems. A transformative year beckons.
Gabriel Selby
Gabriel Selby
2 mins read
Suitability Analysis of the CME CF Ether-Dollar Reference Rate - Asia Pacific Variant as a Basis for Regulated Financial ProductsThis paper assess whether our regulated CME CF Ether-Dollar Reference Rate – Asia Pacific Variant (ETHUSD_AP) achieves the essential qualities a benchmark requires for it be suitable for use as the basis for regulated products.
CF Benchmarks
CF Benchmarks
12 mins read
Gabriel Selby
Gabriel Selby
2 mins read
Gabriel Selby
Gabriel Selby
2 mins read
Ether: A Strategic Asset for the Decentralized EconomyEthereum's disruptive smart contract platform is driving innovation and adoption across its decentralized ecosystem. Ether stands to benefit as its native token and is poised to capture value from Ethereum's growth, making it a strategic technological asset.
Gabriel Selby
Gabriel Selby
2 mins read
Gabriel Selby
Gabriel Selby
2 mins read
Exploring Bitcoin Basis Trades: How Price Singularity in ETFs and Futures is Bolstering Market ActivitySpot Bitcoin ETFs and CME futures contracts using the same price benchmark (BRRNY) enables precise arbitrage. This alignment facilitates efficient basis trades and streamlines ETF creation and redemption processes, enhancing market efficiency.
Gabriel Selby
Gabriel Selby
5 mins read
Suitability Analysis of the CME CF Solana-Dollar Reference Rate as a Basis for Regulated Financial ProductsThe likelihood that institutional participation in Solana will continue to increase underscores the need for price benchmarks that are demonstrably fit for the purpose of pricing this growing asset.
CF Benchmarks
CF Benchmarks
13 mins read
Suitability Analysis of the CME CF Ether-Dollar Reference Rate - New York Variant as a Basis for Regulated Financial ProductsThis paper seeks to understand whether the regulated CME CF Ether-Dollar Reference Rate – New York Variant (ETHUSD_NY) achieves the qualities required of a regulated Benchmark: that it is representative of the underlying market, resistant to manipulation, and replicable by market participants.
CF Benchmarks
CF Benchmarks
13 mins read
How Does a Benchmark Benefit Bitcoin ETF Investors?In the case of ETFs, the primary purpose of a benchmark is to determine the cash value of the investments held by the ETF, so a Net Asset Value (NAV) can be calculated. This facilitates a number of processes that are crucial to the operation of an ETF and serve its investors.
CF Benchmarks
CF Benchmarks
3 mins read
Suitability Analysis of the CME CF Bitcoin Reference Rate - New York Variant as a Basis for Regulated Financial Products - February 2024 UpdateThis paper seeks to understand whether the CME CF Bitcoin Reference Rate – New York Variant (BRRNY), the benchmark for six U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs that, on aggregate, hold AuM of $9.2bn at the time of writing, achieves the qualities required of a regulated benchmark.
CF Benchmarks
CF Benchmarks
13 mins read
Suitability Analysis of the CME CF Bitcoin Reference Rate - Asia Pacific Variant as a Basis for Regulated Financial ProductsThis paper seeks to understand whether the regulated CME CF Bitcoin Reference Rate – Asia Pacific Variant (BRRAP) achieves the qualities required of a benchmark: being representative of the underlying market, resistant to manipulation, and replicable by market participants.
CF Benchmarks
CF Benchmarks
12 mins read
Optimizing Capital Efficiency in Replicating the BRRNY for the Creation and Redemption of Shares for US Spot Bitcoin ETFsCME CF Constituent Exchange Liquidity During the Bitcoin Reference Rate - New York Variant Observation Window of 1500 to 1600 ET
Pending US Spot Bitcoin ETFs
The anticipation of spot bitcoin ETFs in the U.S. has continued to drive interest in bitcoin globally. Since BlackRock first filed an S-1 registration statement on June 15th, 2023 the CME CF Bitcoin Reference Rate - New York Variant (BRRNY) has traded up from $25,401.77 to $41,842.42 (1), an increase of almost 65%.
There has been much s
CF Benchmarks
CF Benchmarks
7 mins read
Gabriel Selby
Gabriel Selby
2 mins read
Monthly Market Recap - June 2023This report aims to provide the reader with a quick overview of the blockchain economic categories influencing recent market performance, gain insights into institutional investors' capital allocation in digital assets, and understand how crypto is affected by the broader market landscape.
Key takeaways for the month:
* Markets are showing renewed optimism in response to several premier asset managers pursuing spot Bitcoin ETF approvals. This has triggered an aggressive upward retracement in
Gabriel Selby
Gabriel Selby
1 mins read
CF Benchmarks
CF Benchmarks
12 mins read
Monthly Market Recap - May 2023This report aims to provide the reader with a quick overview of the blockchain economic categories influencing recent market performance, gain insights into institutional investors' capital allocation in digital assets, and understand how crypto is affected by the broader market landscape.
Key takeaways for the month:
* During the past month, digital assets demonstrated a general downward trend, mirroring the prevailing macroeconomic uncertainties. The primary drivers of these uncertainties w
Gabriel Selby
Gabriel Selby
1 mins read
Suitability Analysis of the CME CF BRR as a Basis for Regulated Financial Products - May 2023CF Benchmarks ascertains the presence of fair and transparent market conditions and processes to identify and impede illegal, unfair or manipulative practices by conducting a thorough review of any exchange under consideration for inclusion as a Constituent Exchange.
CF Benchmarks
CF Benchmarks
12 mins read
Monthly Market Recap - April 2023This report is designed to provide the reader a quick overview of the blockchain economic categories that have been impacting recent crypto market performance, gain insights into where institutional investors are directing capital for digital assets, and comprehend how crypto is affected by and influences the broader market landscape.
Key takeaways for the month:
* The Ethereum network's latest "Shanghai" upgrade enabled validators to un-stake their tokens for the first time, resulting in a s
Gabriel Selby
Gabriel Selby
1 mins read
Monthly Market Recap - March 2023This report is designed to provide the reader a quick overview of the blockchain economic categories that have been impacting recent crypto market performance, gain insights into where institutional investors are directing capital for digital assets, and comprehend how crypto is affected by and influences the broader market landscape.
Key takeaways for the month:
* Major bank failures have increased concerns about financial stability, leading to a decrease in market-based interest rate expect
Gabriel Selby
Gabriel Selby
1 mins read
Monthly Market Recap - February 2023This report has been designed to help you see at a glance which blockchain economic categories have been driving recent crypto market performance, get a sense of where institutional investors are allocating capital earmarked for digital assets, and understand how crypto fits into, impacts and is influenced by the broader market picture.
Please click here to read the full report. Lastly, be sure to subscribe to our latest news and research to stay on top of the crypto market!
Gabriel Selby
Gabriel Selby
0 mins read
Monthly Market Recap - January 2023This report has been designed to help you see at a glance which blockchain economic categories have been driving recent crypto market performance, get a sense of where institutional investors are allocating capital earmarked for digital assets, and understand how crypto fits into, impacts and is influenced by the broader market picture.
Please click here to read the full report. Lastly, be sure to subscribe to our latest news and research to stay on top of the crypto market!
Gabriel Selby
Gabriel Selby
0 mins read
Quarterly Attribution Analysis
CF Benchmarks Quarterly Attribution ReportAnother exogenous shock has led crypto markets lower over the last rebalancing period as one of the world’s largest exchanges surprisingly filed for bankruptcy. All of our flagship portfolio indices finished in negative territory with pricing volatility surging in the month of November.
Gabriel Selby
Gabriel Selby
16 mins read
Quarterly Attribution Analysis
Quarterly Attribution Report: CF Diversified Large Cap IndexThe CF Diversified Large Cap Index - is a liquid, investible benchmark portfolio index designed to track the performance of large-cap digital assets. The index seeks to capture 95% of the total market capitalization of the investible digital asset universe as its constituents. Index constituents are weighted using the diversified market capitalization which is determined by the free-float market capitalization adjusted by the application of the harmonic series' terms. This has the benefit of dis
Gabriel Selby
Gabriel Selby
5 mins read
Gabriel Selby
Gabriel Selby
5 mins read
Gabriel Selby
Gabriel Selby
5 mins read
Gabriel Selby
Gabriel Selby
4 mins read
Gabriel Selby
Gabriel Selby
5 mins read
Quarterly Attribution Analysis
Quarterly Attribution Analysis: CF Web 3.0 Smart Contract Platforms IndexThe higher weighting of Solana (SOL), coupled with weak performance, led to a pronounced drag on our Smart Contract Platforms Index. The total negative contribution of SOL for the rebalance period was almost 40% of the index’s total -31.8% decline.
Gabriel Selby
Gabriel Selby
5 mins read
CF Benchmarks Monthly Market RecapHere's the November edition of a monthly compilation of digital asset market data, analysis and insights by CF Benchmarks' Lead Research Analyst Gabe Selby.
This report has been designed to help you see at a glance which blockchain economic categories have been driving recent crypto market performance, get a sense of where institutional investors are allocating capital earmarked for digital assets, and understand how crypto fits into, impacts and is influenced by the broader market picture.
Gabriel Selby
Gabriel Selby
3 mins read
CF Benchmarks
CF Benchmarks
5 mins read
CF Benchmarks
CF Benchmarks
5 mins read
CF Benchmarks
CF Benchmarks
5 mins read
CF Benchmarks
CF Benchmarks
5 mins read
CF Benchmarks
CF Benchmarks
4 mins read
Ken Odeluga
Ken Odeluga
5 mins read
CF Benchmarks
CF Benchmarks
2 mins read
Ken Odeluga
Ken Odeluga
5 mins read
CF Digital Asset Classification Structure
How to see Crypto Portfolio Return Drivers in 3D, with DACSAttributing notional digital asset portfolio returns to DACS Categories and Subcategories provides information and insights into the economic reality engendered by holdings at a higher-resolution than is possible from an examination of the assets and their weights alone.
Ken Odeluga
Ken Odeluga
9 mins read
CF Digital Culture Index benchmarks protocols of funInstitutional participants seeking to capture alpha from material present and promising future opportunities in the Metaverse, NFTs, video games and digitalised music consumption, can now do so via a secure, replicable, methodology devised by a regulated Benchmark Administrator
Ken Odeluga
Ken Odeluga
6 mins read
