Crypto perpetual futures finally legal in the U.S. — long Coinbase as the first-mover winner
The main U.S. derivatives regulator just cleared the way for crypto perpetual futures contracts to trade on American exchanges for the first time. Coinbase and prediction market Kalshi are the first platforms moving forward to offer these products, which have historically been one of the most popular — and profitable — crypto trading instruments worldwide.
Idea
Perpetual futures are the most heavily traded crypto instrument globally — they account for more volume than regular spot trading on many days. Until now, U.S. investors could only access them through offshore exchanges, which meant Coinbase and other regulated platforms were sitting out a massive revenue stream. The CFTC green light means Coinbase can finally capture that demand domestically, which should meaningfully boost trading revenue. This isn't just a one-day pop — it's a structural business expansion that analysts will factor into their models over the coming weeks. The fact that Bitcoin ETFs have been bleeding $2.8B in outflows makes this diversification into derivatives even more timely for Coinbase.