Kraken to Launch Regulated US Perpetual Futures – Trade BTC, ETH & More Soon!

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Kraken Plans CFTC-Regulated Perpetual Futures For US Crypto Traders

TL;DR

  • Kraken says it plans to launch CFTC-regulated perpetual futures for eligible U.S. traders.
  • The products will be listed on Bitnomial Exchange, a CFTC Designated Contract Market acquired by Kraken parent Payward.
  • Clearing will be handled by NinjaTrader Clearing, doing business as Kraken Derivatives US.
  • Initial supported assets are expected to include BTC, ETH, SOL, XRP, ADA, LINK, DOGE, LTC, and AVAX.

Kraken is getting ready to offer perpetual futures trading to qualified U.S. customers, following regulations set by the CFTC. This could bring a widely-used crypto trading product into a more established and regulated U.S. market.

Kraken announced on May 29th that it plans to launch new perpetual contracts within the next 30 days for eligible customers in the U.S., including both individual traders and institutions. These contracts will be available on Bitnomial Exchange, which was recently purchased by Payward, the company that owns Kraken. Bitnomial is a regulated exchange authorized by the CFTC.

NinjaTrader Clearing, LLC (operating as Kraken Derivatives US) will handle the process of settling trades. As a registered Futures Commission Merchant and member of the National Futures Association (NFA), Kraken will allow its Pro users to trade perpetual futures contracts, in addition to existing spot, margin, and CME futures options.

Why Regulated Perpetuals Matter

Perpetual futures are a key part of crypto trading. They’re different from regular futures because they don’t expire, and instead use funding payments to ensure their price stays close to the current market price. Kraken’s version of these futures will update prices constantly and calculate funding rates every eight hours.

For a long time, most cryptocurrency perpetual futures trading has happened on exchanges located outside the U.S. Kraken estimates over $60 trillion in crypto derivatives volume will be traded in 2025, and historically, the vast majority of this trading has occurred on unregulated, offshore platforms.

This background explains why having a regulated structure through the CFTC is important. A U.S.-based, regulated market for perpetual contracts would allow American traders to use crypto derivatives they’re already familiar with, but within a more transparent and supervised system.

Which Assets Are Included?

Kraken announced its new platform will initially support trading in popular cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, Ripple, Cardano, Chainlink, Dogecoin, Litecoin, and Avalanche. This wider selection of currencies means the platform offers more options than if it only focused on Bitcoin.

Adding cryptocurrencies like Solana, XRP, Dogecoin, and Avalanche could attract more traders who currently use platforms outside the U.S. to trade these popular altcoins. This also shows that crypto trading in the U.S., which is subject to regulations, is expanding beyond just Bitcoin and Ethereum.

Just because these products are regulated doesn’t mean they’re without risk. Perpetual contracts can be unpredictable, often involve borrowing money, and are easily affected by changes in funding rates. However, a regulated marketplace might attract traders and institutions who previously avoided unregulated platforms due to worries about trustworthiness, legal compliance, or how things are run.

A Shift In U.S. Crypto Market Structure

This launch is part of a growing pattern: major cryptocurrency exchanges are focusing on offering sophisticated trading options within the regulated U.S. market, instead of keeping those services overseas.

If Kraken succeeds, other cryptocurrency exchanges might feel compelled to offer more regulated derivatives. This could also make it easier for U.S. traders to access products they’re already familiar with internationally, but with oversight from U.S. financial regulators.

The big question for the market is whether these new, regulated perpetual contracts will become popular enough to challenge existing offshore exchanges. How much trading moves over will depend on things like how easy they are to use, how efficiently funds can be managed, the fees charged, and overall liquidity.

Despite the challenges, this launch is a significant development. Crypto derivatives aren’t going away in the U.S.; instead, they’re being re-established within a regulated framework, and perpetual futures contracts could be a key part of this change.

Originally published by Kraken at Kraken Blog

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2026-06-12 16:13