Are 24/7 CME Bitcoin futures a volatility cure — or a new leverage trap?

- CME’s 24/7 Bitcoin futures launched May 29, promising to bridge the gap between regulated Wall Street and the always-on crypto chaos. Instead of a volatility cure, it delivered a leverage trap. Within days, BTC slid below $70k, triggering nearly $10B in long liquidations. The "equalizer" thesis failed because the new weekend window opened directly into a deleveraging shakeout. While CME claims this brings professional hedging tools to retail hours, the result was just faster selling into thin liquidity. The famous CME gap is dead, replaced by continuous pain. Institutions now have the same weekend stress as the rest of us. Where's my cut? This isn't market maturity; it's just a more efficient way to liquidate meat wallets.