Kraken to Launch CFTC-Regulated Perpetual Futures Contracts
On Friday, Kraken announced its intention to introduce CFTC-regulated perpetual futures contracts in the U.S. within the next month. This comes shortly after the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission approved the product.
If all goes well, these contracts will debut on the Bitnomial Exchange, which is regulated by the CFTC. Bitnomial is now under the umbrella of Kraken’s parent company, Payward, following a recent acquisition.
On April 17, Payward revealed its plans to acquire Bitnomial, a cryptocurrency derivatives platform, for as much as $550 million. The goal is to give Kraken Pro customers access to Bitnomial’s perpetual futures offerings.
However, as of Sunday morning, there wasn’t a specific Bitcoin (BTC) perpetual contract application visible in Bitnomial’s recent filings with the CFTC. Kraken’s announcement indicated the application was submitted on Friday, stating, “Today’s announcement kickstarts plans to bring that activity onshore through the CFTC regulatory arena.”
“U.S. customers will soon be able to trade perpetual futures on @KrakenPro,” the company noted in a social media update on Saturday.
Requests for additional details about the filing went unanswered by two Kraken executives and Bitnomial’s chief regulatory officer.
Typically, companies require their applications to be classified appropriately. For instance, KalshiEX, which recently gained CFTC approval to trade BTC perpetual futures contracts, had initially asked for confidentiality in its application.
The competition is heating up in the regulated U.S. market for perpetual futures. Shortly after the CFTC approved the BTC PERP contract, Coinbase Financial Markets made moves to provide U.S. institutional investors access to the wider global crypto options and perpetual futures markets via its regulated provider, Deribit.
Coinbase had acquired Deribit in August 2025 to broaden its reach in crypto derivatives. Deribit is recognized as the leading crypto options exchange in terms of open interest.
In September, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the CFTC signaled that they would explore introducing domestic perpetual futures trading. They acknowledged that, due to various regulatory and jurisdictional limitations, such contracts are predominantly available in offshore markets.
CFTC Chairman Michael Selig remarked on Friday that the primary question isn’t about the existence of perpetual contracts for crypto assets but rather whether they operate under U.S. oversight and regulations.
Also, on Friday, CFTC staff shared new guidance related to 24/7 trading, clearing, and settlement, suggesting that crypto asset derivatives could be particularly well-suited for round-the-clock markets.
