Summary
- Major crypto entities including Coinbase, Kalshi, and Kraken’s parent company Payward threw their weight behind the Commodity Futures Trading Commission in a legal battle concerning its power to oversee perpetual futures linked to single equities.
- The Capital Markets Alliance, asserting backing from Citadel Securities and Cboe, contended that these instruments properly belong under the regulatory purview of the Securities and Exchange Commission.
- Proposals from Coinbase, Kalshi, and Payward to offer these indefinite contracts automatically gained clearance on November 2.
A coalition of cryptocurrency businesses has intervened to support the United States Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) amid a court battle regarding its mandate to supervise perpetual futures contracts based on individual equities.
Prominent industry participants—namely Coinbase Global, Kalshi, Payward (the parent organization of Kraken), DRW Holdings, Jump Trading, and Paradigm—submitted an amicus brief backing the CFTC at the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, responding to a lawsuit initiated earlier this month by the Capital Markets Alliance (CMA).
The CMA initially moved to contest the CFTC’s endorsement of open-ended equity futures, which function similarly to instruments found within digital asset derivatives trading. Representatives for the CMA noted that the group receives support from major conventional financial entities and brokerages like Citadel Securities and Cboe.
Coinbase, Kalshi, and Payward previously lodged proposals to introduce domestic stock perpetual futures, and their filings achieved approved status on November 2.
Perpetual futures operate as derivative agreements enabling speculators to wager on the future valuation of an underlying instrument. In contrast to conventional futures contracts, perpetuals lack any set expiration date.
The CMA contended that equity-based variations of these instruments should instead be regulated by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Responding via email to CoinDesk when the CMA launched its litigation on November 3, a representative for the CFTC characterized the legal challenge as concerning.
The official further remarked that the marketplace ought to be regulated by statutory law rather than through legal maneuvers designed to stifle progress.
Originally published at https://www.coindesk.com/policy/2026/11/10/coinbase-kalshi-kraken-parent-back-cftc-in-legal-fight-over-stock-perpetual-futures.
