The derivatives market is experiencing growing adoption among both institutional and retail investors as awareness and education about the asset class continues to grow, says Shawn Creighton, director of index derivatives solutions at FTSE Russell.

“I think [investors are] a bit more comfortable understanding how derivatives can fit in their specific financial portfolio, whereas before they were concerned. . . . You see derivatives becoming a lot more mainstream, especially options, whereas before some of these products were primarily geared towards [institutions].”

Derivatives as an investment are a financial contract with unique terms for the underlying asset that can be bought or sold — the value is entirely dependant on the asset. This investment is typically employed by institutional........

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