On $ETH, a new "official benchmark" is taking shape. The Nasdaq and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME Group) jointly launched the "Nasdaq-CME Crypto™ Index" on January 8, 2026. This is not simply a rebranding of an existing index, but rather a set of institutional-grade crypto asset benchmarks rebuilt by two major global financial infrastructure giants.

What exactly is special about this? Breaking it down, the core ideas are these four points:

**First, the positioning is very clear—serving as a performance benchmark for Wall Street products.** From day one, this index has been fixed as the "underlying benchmark for regulated crypto investment products." In other words, in the future, Wall Street's Ethereum spot ETFs, various crypto structured notes, and pension accounts can directly use it for performance comparison or as a tracking target. Institutions no longer need to build their own evaluation systems, saving a lot of trouble.

**Second, the governance structure is carefully designed.** Nasdaq is responsible for branding and methodology, while CME brings experience in derivatives risk management. Together, they established a joint governance committee that has veto power over constituent coins, exchange whitelists, and custodian qualifications. The specific index calculation is handled by CF Benchmarks registered in the UK, ensuring the data is auditable, litigable, and compliant with disclosure requirements—this process is exactly what institutional clients need.

**Third, the entry criteria are essentially about "positioning."** To be included in this index, tokens must be listed on at least three core exchanges that undergo annual due diligence, and supported by two investment-grade custodians. If any of the three metrics—trading volume, free float, or on-chain activity—drops, the token will be removed during quarterly rebalancing. This whitelist mechanism effectively excludes most small-cap, highly controlled, and hard-to-custody projects, solving the headache for institutions: "Can I invest in this?"

**Finally, the market-level impact.** This is the most imaginative part—crypto assets are being incorporated into the "standard template" for global asset allocation for the first time. Previously, fund managers wanting crypto exposure had to worry about valuation, custody, auditing, and risk management all by themselves; now, simply writing "reference Nasdaq CME Crypto™ Index" in the fund's prospectus suffices, enabling a one-click exposure backed by exchanges, custodians, auditors, and regulators. As a result, pension funds, insurance companies, and sovereign wealth funds can place orders directly through existing OMS/EMS systems—crypto assets finally share the same status as S&P 500, gold, and oil: standardized assets.