Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) Chairman Michael Selig has announced that single-stock perpetual futures contracts are now authorized to trade on registered United States exchanges. Under CFTC Regulation 40.3, the non-expiring derivative product originating from the crypto industry has officially entered domestic trading venues.
Perpetual futures allow market participants to speculate on stock price movements without an asset ownership expiration date. The mechanism was originally popularized in the crypto sector by BitMEX in 2016 before gaining widespread adoption across digital asset markets. To offer single-stock derivative trading, exchanges must secure dual registration from both the CFTC and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for security futures products.
The CFTC’s approval responds to a wave of filings submitted in September 2026 by crypto exchanges and derivatives platforms. Coinbase, Kalshi, Bitnomial (a subsidiary of Kraken), and OG.com were among the applicants. Among them, OG.com plans to offer 24-hour stock contract trading during weekdays.
Selig emphasized that the move is designed to attract American traders back from unregulated offshore markets into the domestic trading system under formal legal protections.
The approval of single-stock contracts marks a continuation of the futures commission’s policy regarding non-expiring instruments.
Regulatory Easing Since May 2026
The CFTC previously approved Bitcoin perpetual contracts for Kalshi in May 2026. Around the same time, the commission granted regulatory relief to Coinbase to facilitate crypto perpetuals through its foreign affiliates. The authorization of single-stock contracts represents the next milestone bridging crypto trading mechanics with corporate equity markets.
Legal Challenges from Citadel and Cboe
Michael Selig’s decision immediately sparked a lawsuit on Tuesday afternoon from the Capital Markets Alliance coalition. The coalition, comprising Cboe, Citadel Securities, and Healthy Markets, accused the CFTC of violating the Administrative Procedure Act. The group contends that approving stock perpetuals oversteps the SEC’s statutory authority over security-based swaps.
The pushback from the capital markets coalition deepens an existing legal dispute initiated by the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. CME Group has been suing the CFTC since June 2026, arguing that perpetual contracts should be strictly classified and regulated as swaps rather than futures.
For US traders, this approval unlocks access to non-expiring stock transactions directly on regulated exchanges. However, before round-the-clock trading becomes widespread, regulators must successfully defend their authority against exchange coalition lawsuits in court.
Reported via Cointelegraph.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational and educational purposes only, not financial advice. Cryptocurrency assets are highly volatile and carry significant risk. Always do your own research (DYOR) and never invest more than you can afford to lose.
