Kalshi Launches Crypto Perpetual Futures, Becomes First Federally Regulated US Perps Venue
Kalshi announced on May 29, 2026 that it will list perpetual futures contracts on its CFTC-regulated exchange, starting with crypto perps. The company claims it is the first US firm in history to offer perpetual futures under federal regulation, putting it in direct competition with offshore venues like Binance, Bybit, and OKX.
Kalshi announced on May 29, 2026 that it will list perpetual futures contracts on its CFTC-regulated Designated Contract Market, starting with crypto perpetuals. In its statement, the company described itself as the first firm in American history to offer perpetuals under federal regulation. Perpetual futures, the offshore-dominated derivative product that powers most retail crypto-trading volume on platforms like Binance, Bybit, and OKX, have until now been unavailable to US residents from a CFTC-licensed venue. The product launch reframes Kalshi from a prediction-market platform into a full-stack retail derivatives exchange.
The strategic logic is straightforward. Kalshi already has the regulatory hardest part: a federal DCM license, an active CFTC working relationship, and (since the May 5 Liburdi ruling in Arizona) a strong preemption shield against state-level enforcement. Crypto perpetuals globally trade roughly $200 billion in daily volume across offshore venues. Even modest capture of US-resident demand that currently routes through VPNs to Binance and Bybit would dwarf Kalshi's current prediction-market revenue. The CFTC for its part has wanted onshore perpetuals for years; chairman Michael Selig has publicly signaled support for regulated derivatives products that compete with offshore venues.
Mechanics matter. Perpetual futures differ from standard futures in that they have no expiration date; instead a funding rate (paid between longs and shorts every few hours) keeps the contract price anchored to spot. Kalshi has not yet disclosed the funding-rate schedule, leverage caps, or initial margin requirements, but CFTC-licensed perps will almost certainly carry lower maximum leverage than offshore venues (Binance offers up to 125x; CFTC retail products are typically capped under 20x). The lower leverage will be the friction that determines whether sophisticated traders actually migrate from offshore or simply add Kalshi to a multi-venue routing setup. Initial rollout is crypto pairs (BTC, ETH announced; others tbd), with FX, commodities, and equities perpetuals signaled as later phases.
For the broader prediction-markets industry the announcement is a tell. Kalshi is the operator that has won every legal fight it has entered since 2023: CFTC sports-contract challenge, multiple state preemption suits, the Arizona ruling. Pivoting hardware that won in event contracts toward a larger and more contested derivative category is the move you make when you believe your regulatory position is durable. Polymarket cannot easily follow because its USDC-on-Polygon settlement model is harder to reconcile with CFTC margin and clearing requirements. Robinhood, which already routes prediction-market orders through Kalshi and its own MIAXdx DCM, is the firm best positioned to compete on perps once Kalshi proves the product. The next 12 months are likely to look more like Kalshi vs Robinhood than Kalshi vs Polymarket.
Operators mentioned in this article
Recent updates
An Independent Integrity Body Found 7 Betting Irregularities at the World Cup. FIFA Said There Were None. The Clash Centers on Polymarket.
The Group of Copenhagen — the Council of Europe's independent match manipulation watchdog — raised seven yellow notices for potential betting irregularities during the 2026 World Cup, in direct contradiction to FIFA's own Integrity Task Force, which published an all-clear on Tuesday. The most troubling finding involves Polymarket: the platform opened a market on July 2 asking whether Folarin Balogun would play against Belgium — the same day Balogun received a red card and three days before FIFA publicly confirmed his ban was suspended. No equivalent markets were opened for any of the other 14 red cards shown at the tournament.
After Yesterday's Hearing, Congress Looks Ready to Legislate on Prediction Markets — Not Just Watch
The House Agriculture Subcommittee held a two-hour hearing on July 22 examining sports event contracts, with witnesses from the American Gaming Association, tribal gaming, and both sides of the CFTC authority debate. Subcommittee Chair Dusty Johnson said Congress 'cannot afford to be silent' and signaled there is 'work for them to do.' Witnesses urged members to advance H.R. 7840, the Event Contract Enforcement Act, which would ban sports event contracts outright. The hearing adds a third front to a fight that is already being waged simultaneously in ten state courts and at the CFTC.
Bloomberg Found $200 Million in Suspicious Wagers on Kalshi and Polymarket. An Army Sergeant Has Already Been Indicted.
A Bloomberg investigation identified approximately $200 million in wagers on Kalshi and Polymarket between January and June 2026 displaying characteristics associated with potential insider trading — concentrated in geopolitical event markets. A federal indictment unsealed in April charged US Army Master Sergeant Gannon Ken Van Dyke with using classified information about Operation Absolute Resolve, the operation that captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, to generate $409,000 in profit. 57% of wallets with unusually successful returns were created within 24 hours of placing bets. The House Oversight Committee has launched a formal investigation.