In brief
- Wasting little time following the CFTC’s landmark Bitcoin perps approval on Friday, Kalshi has formally applied to self-certify derivatives tied to 12 major altcoins.
- The CFTC indicated that perpetual futures would be approved on a case-by-case basis, so the tranche of derivatives wasn’t immediately approved.
- Bitcoin anchors crypto’s derivatives market at nearly $55 billion in open interest, followed by Ethereum ($31.5 billion), Solana ($5.5 billion), and $XRP ($3 billion).
Kalshi moved swiftly to lock down an emerging market for perpetual futures in the U.S. on Monday, filing to certify a menu of offerings tied to crypto’s leading altcoins.
Following the CFTC’s approval of Bitcoin perpetual futures on Friday, the prediction market has begun eyeing derivatives tied to Ethereum, $XRP, Solana, Dogecoin, Stellar, Chainlink, Bitcoin Cash, Litecoin, Sui, Shiba Inu, Polkadot, and Hedera, according to a filing.
The robust slate of products tied to digital assets highlights Kalshi’s deeper push—amid fresh regulatory tailwinds—into a space that’s been historically dominated by offshore platforms like Binance and faces growing competition from decentralized upstarts such as Hyperliquid.
In its order on Friday, the CFTC indicated that a case-by-case process would be appropriate for U.S. companies eager to list perpetual futures beyond Bitcoin, noting that the class of derivatives overall “design may not be suitable for all asset classes.” That means Kalshi’s tranche of derivative offerings hasn’t actually been approved yet.
In terms of open interest, Bitcoin anchors crypto’s derivatives market, according to CoinGlass. The value of unsettled trades tied to the leading digital asset by market cap totaled $54.9 billion, followed by Ethereum ($31.5 billion), Solana ($5.5 billion), and $XRP ($3 billion).
Notably, Kalshi’s derivatives wouldn’t be off-limits for customers in the U.S., a barrier that the CFTC symbolically cast aside when approving the firm’s move on Friday. Meanwhile, the CME moved to make trading for Bitcoin futures and options a round-the-clock endeavor.
Prediction market analyst Dustin Gouker noted to Decrypt that Kalshi moved to self-certify the derivatives under a similar process to how it established offerings based on events. The altcoin slate hit the CFTC’s desk alongside markets tied to NFL athletes’ performances.
Although the CFTC’s order on Friday was narrow in scope, some have described the development as potentially far-reaching, including Strategy co-founder and Executive Chairman Michael Saylor. Enabling regulated access to perpetual futures is “good for BTC holders” and supports the Bitcoin-buying firm’s flagship preferred stock, he said in an X post.
Perpetual futures, or perps, have long been popular among crypto traders. Unlike traditional futures, the derivatives don’t feature an expiration date, allowing traders to speculate indefinitely amid periodic payments that keep prices anchored to underlying assets.
The CFTC appears committed to making perps work in the U.S., even if its case-by-case approach reflects caution. In an X post on Friday, CFTC Chair Mike Selig declared that the agency would “use the tools at its disposal to onshore crypto asset perpetuals.”
