Arthur Hayes, BitMEX co-founder, has a new reason to feel nostalgic: Coinbase is in federal court defending its right to offer perpetual futures on individual US stocks.
Hayes said he was “flattered” by the development. It makes sense, given that BitMEX launched perpetual swaps a decade ago, when the product was a fringe crypto experiment rather than the subject of a courtroom fight.
“Ten years later, Coinbase is in federal court defending the right to offer them on US stocks. I’m flattered.”
What is happening in court
The dispute stems from a lawsuit the Capital Markets Alliance brought against the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. The group is challenging the regulator’s approval of single-stock perpetual futures.
A perpetual future is a futures contract without an expiration date. Traders can hold a position on an asset’s price indefinitely instead of rolling it over when a contract expires.
On November 2, 2026, the CFTC approved applications from Coinbase Derivatives, Kalshi and Bitnomial to offer these single-stock products. The Capital Markets Alliance is challenging that approval.
On November 10, 2026, Coinbase filed an amicus brief supporting the CFTC’s regulatory authority. Prediction market Kalshi and Payward, Kraken’s parent company, joined the filing.
An amicus brief is a formal submission from an interested outsider. The filer is not a direct party to the case but wants the judge to consider its views before ruling.
Judge Valerie Caproni has already denied a request for a temporary restraining order against the perpetual futures. Such an order would have paused the products while the case proceeded, so its denial leaves the approvals in place for now.
From BitMEX experiment to federal court
Hayes has reason to take the moment personally. BitMEX introduced perpetual swaps in May 2016, and the product has since become a familiar part of crypto trading.
Coinbase officials have framed the issue as one of access. They argue that US investors should be able to use derivatives products already available to traders elsewhere in the world.
Who has skin in the game
The coalition backing the CFTC is notable in its own right. Coinbase, Kalshi and Payward represent a crypto exchange, a prediction market and the corporate parent of another major exchange.
Bitnomial, the third approved applicant alongside Coinbase Derivatives and Kalshi, also has a direct stake. If the approvals stand, all three would be positioned to offer a product not previously available to US stock traders in this form.
The Capital Markets Alliance, meanwhile, is challenging whether these instruments should have been approved at all. The case effectively asks a federal judge to decide where the line falls between crypto-style derivatives and traditional equity markets.
What the case means for traders and the industry
The immediate question is jurisdiction. If the court affirms the CFTC’s authority to approve single-stock perpetual futures, that could provide a template for other firms seeking to launch similar products.
Judge Caproni’s refusal to grant a temporary restraining order leaves the approvals in place, but it does not rule on the merits of the case.
For investors following Coinbase, the case touches on a long-running strategic theme. The company has sought to expand beyond spot crypto trading into derivatives, and a court victory would bolster that effort.
