Imagine making a deal today to buy a certain amount of oranges next summer at a set price, no matter what the price of oranges is at that time. A futures contract is a formal agreement like that. It's a standardized legal contract where you agree to buy or sell a particular asset (like a stock, cryptocurrency, or even something like a barrel of oil) at a predetermined price on a specific date in the future. People use futures contracts for a variety of reasons, such as speculating on price movements or hedging against future price changes.
