Sydney — The craze for cryptocurrencies entered a new chapter on Monday as bitcoin futures rocketed by more than 20% of their value at a closely watched launch, while Asian shares climbed amid optimism about global growth. The most-traded contract on the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) Global Markets exchange opened at $15,460 in New York on Sunday evening, before leaping to a high of $18,700 — a gain of 21%. They were last quoted at $17,550 a premium of more than $1,600 to the price on Gemini Exchange. The futures are cash-settled contracts based on the auction price of bitcoin in US dollars on the Gemini Exchange, which is owned and operated by virtual currency entrepreneurs Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss. The cryptocurrency has boasted a gravity-defying 15-fold gain since the start of the year, attracting institutional interest and no small amount of question marks. The acting governor of the Reserve Bank of New Zealand on Sunday said bitcoin appeared to be a "classic case" o...
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