On January 5, the derivatives marketplace CME Group announced that it is planning to launch reference rates and real-time indexes for 3 metaverse crypto assets, allowing investors to track pricing data more reliably by utilizing a method typically employed in traditional finance.

According to a statement released on Thursday, CME Group and CF Benchmarks will begin offering reference rates for Axie Infinity Shards, Chiliz (CHZ), and Decentraland MANA starting on January 30. According to Giovanni  Vicioso, head of cryptocurrency products at CME Group, the reference rates and indexes can be used by investors to "price sector-specific portfolios, develop structured products, and manage price risk around various Metaverse-based projects."

At least two cryptocurrency exchanges, including Bitstamp, Coinbase, Kraken, itBit, and LMAX Digital, will provide pricing information for the calculation of the reference rates and real-time indexes for AXS, CHZ, and MANA. The daily reference rates for the assets will be released at 4:00 PM GMT and priced in US dollars. Daily, every second, a real-time index will be published.

The largest of the aforementioned metaverse plays, Chiliz, has a current market valuation of $742 million, according to CoinMarketCap. Market capitalizations for AXS and MANA are respectively $686.5 million and $597.2 million.

The CME Group has been involved in the cryptocurrency market; last year, it introduced micro-sized Bitcoin and Ether options. For institutional investors outside of the US, the derivatives market also offered BTC and ETH options in the euro currency.