Intercontinental Exchange Reports Record Open Interest in August
Intercontinental platform has released its August 2025 trading volume and revenue statistics, highlighting a month of strong growth across energy, interest rates, and agricultural contracts. Several key records were set, underscoring ICE’s central role in global derivatives markets.
Energy Markets Lead With Record Futures Activity
Energy derivatives posted notable strength, with open interest up 6% compared to August 2024. Oil contracts drove the gains:
- Oil OI increased 14% year-on-year.
- Brent crude open interest rose 16% year-on-year.
- WTI and ICE HOU combined open interest gained 5%.
Other crude and refined products rose 4% in average daily volume (ADV) and 17% in open interest, including a record 6.0 million futures lots on August 28. Natural gas also surged, with ADV up 8% and open interest up 2%, capped by a record 24.4 million contracts on August 25. European benchmark TTF gas futures added 3% in ADV, with a record 2.4 million lots on August 22. Asia gas contracts expanded rapidly, with ADV up 38% and open interest up 49% year-on-year.
Financial Derivatives Drive Record Interest Rate Contracts
Financial products posted robust growth, with ADV up 6% and 34% year-on-year. Interest rate contracts stood out with ADV up 9% and open interest up 41%.
Highlights include:
- Euribor open interest increased 26%.
- SONIA ADV surged 23% and open interest jumped 63%, reaching a record 11.0 million lots on August 13.
- A record was also set on August 25, with 11.5 million traded in a single day.
Agricultural Contracts Post Mixed but Strong Gains
In agricultural products, ICE reported:
- Sugar open interest up 4% year-on-year.
- Cotton and open interest advanced 17% year-on-year.
These increases reflect stronger global demand for hedging in soft commodities, particularly cotton, where volatility and trade flows continue to rise.
Equities and Options Also Expand
NYSE cash equities ADV climbed 39% year-on-year, while NYSE equity options ADV rose 5%. This signals broad-based activity across both equity and derivative markets, with ICE’s platform infrastructure capturing increased trading volumes during periods of market uncertainty.
Overall Outlook
August 2025 was a milestone month for ICE. Records in open interest across energy and interest rate products demonstrate how global institutions continue to rely on ICE’s benchmark contracts for hedging and portfolio management. While some products showed modest year-on-year declines in average daily volume, the surge in open interest highlights sustained investor positioning.
ICE’s diversified portfolio — spanning energy, financials, agriculture, and equities — remains well-positioned to capture trading demand in volatile markets. The combination of record-setting activity in energy and rates, alongside solid growth in equities and agricultural markets, underscores ICE’s role as one of the most critical infrastructures in global capital markets.
