From innovation to retail adoption: one year of mini bond futures
This study examines the evolution of investor adoption during the first year of trading in mini bond futures, with a particular focus on retail participation.
Executive Summary
One year ago, Euronext introduced the first cash-settled mini futures on major European government bonds, expanding access to government bond derivatives through smaller contract sizes and a cash-settled structure. With a €25,000 notional value, the
contracts provide a more accessible way to gain exposure to European government bond markets across:
▪ French OAT 10-year
▪ Italian BTP 10-year
▪ Italian BTP 30-year
▪ German Bund 10-year
▪ Spanish BONO 10-year
Listed on Euronext Derivatives Milan, these instruments combine a lower capital requirement with the flexibility of cash settlement, broadening the potential investor base while maintaining relevance for institutional investors and asset managers.
This study examines the evolution of investor adoption over the first year of trading, with a particular focus on retail participation. It then analyses the two most actively traded contracts among retail investors, the BTP mini-futures 10-year and BTP mini-futures 30-year, to assess their trading dynamics.
Finally, the study presents the on-screen bid-ask spreads quoted by market makers, providing an indication of the trading conditions available to investors.