✓ Verified by 6+ outlets
CFTC Chairman Selig says perpetual futures on individual stocks can now trade on U.S.-regulated exchanges for the first time
Summary
CFTC Chairman Michael S. Selig said Tuesday that perpetual futures on individual equity securities can begin trading for the first time on CFTC-registered exchanges, according to a CFTC press release.
The contracts can trade on designated contract markets that are also notice-registered with the SEC as national securities exchanges for security futures products, the agency said.
Selig said bringing the products, which have emerged as widely used tools in crypto and other markets, into regulated venues lets U.S. traders use them 'rather than being forced to turn to offshore, and often unregulated, venues.'
He credited the Commodity Futures Modernization Act of 2000 and a CFTC-SEC memorandum of understanding, saying the two agencies have moved past the regulatory 'no man's land' that SEC Chairman Paul Atkins described.
Updates
- Update, : Update (Nov. 3, midday): CoinDesk reported that Selig said the contracts were deemed approved under existing security futures rules and will be overseen by both the CFTC and SEC, and that the statement did not name which exchanges would list equity perps or which stocks would be available at launch. CoinDesk cited DeFiLlama data showing more than $630 billion in perps trading volume over the past month, and noted ICE's recent investment in tradeXYZ, which builds perpetual markets on Hyperliquid. The Block noted the CFTC earlier let KalshiEX and Coinbase list bitcoin perpetual futures, and that President Trump said in August he wanted the CFTC to bring Hyperliquid into the U.S.
- Update, : Update (Nov. 3, afternoon): The same day, a group called the Capital Markets Alliance, backed by Cboe and Citadel Securities among others, sued the CFTC in federal court in New York to block the policy, CoinDesk reported. The suit argues the contracts are security-based swaps under SEC jurisdiction and that the CFTC broke the Administrative Procedure Act by not explaining its reversal. The American Securities Association also criticized the move. The CFTC did not immediately comment, per CoinDesk; this lawsuit has so far been reported by one outlet.
- Update, : Update (Nov. 4): A federal judge refused to halt stock perpetual futures trading on Kalshi, Coinbase Derivatives and Bitnomial, but found the Cboe- and Citadel Securities-backed group likely to prove the CFTC exceeded its authority, Bitcoin Magazine reported.
- Update, : Update (Nov. 10): Coinbase, Kalshi, Kraken parent Payward, DRW Holdings, Jump Trading and Paradigm asked the federal court Monday to accept an amicus brief backing the CFTC in the Capital Markets Alliance's lawsuit, Cointelegraph, CoinDesk and The Block reported. The firms argue a contract does not need a fixed expiration date to count as a security future, while the Cboe- and Citadel Securities-backed group says stock perps are security-based swaps under SEC oversight. Cointelegraph said Judge Valerie Caproni earlier denied a temporary restraining order, leaving trading in place while the case proceeds.
Key facts
- Selig called the expansion 'a significant step' toward letting U.S. market participants use perpetual futures for risk management and price discovery.
- Perpetual futures have no expiry date and are a staple of offshore crypto trading; the CFTC release refers to their emergence as widely sought tools without naming specific venues.
- The release did not name which exchanges will list the first equity perps or when trading will start on a specific venue.
- A new group called the Capital Markets Alliance, whose members include Cboe, Citadel Securities and Healthy Markets Association, sued the CFTC in the Southern District of New York to undo the policy, arguing stock perps are security-based swaps for the SEC.
- Cointelegraph: the plaintiff group was scheduled to file its reply to the CFTC's opposition to a preliminary injunction on Tuesday.