Quick Insights

  • Kraken has launched CFTC-regulated perpetual futures for eligible US customers through Kraken Pro, listed on its recently acquired exchange Bitnomial.
  • Perpetual futures generated more than $60 trillion in global trading volume in 2025, with the vast majority of activity concentrated on offshore venues beyond US regulatory reach.
  • At launch, contracts cover nine assets including bitcoin, ether, solana and XRP, with spot, margin and CME-listed futures all accessible from the same interface.

Kraken has switched on perpetual futures trading for eligible US customers, routing the contracts through Bitnomial, a CFTC-regulated exchange, clearinghouse and brokerage owned by Kraken's parent company Payward. The products are available through Kraken Pro alongside spot, margin and CME-listed crypto futures, all accessible through a single interface and drawing on a shared futures wallet.

Perpetual futures, commonly referred to as perps, allow traders to take leveraged long or short positions on assets like bitcoin without owning the underlying asset and without a contract expiry date. Positions can remain open indefinitely provided margin requirements are maintained. The product has become the dominant form of crypto derivatives trading globally, with annual volume topping $60 trillion in 2025, according to Kraken's own data, though until recently that market was almost entirely inaccessible to US traders through regulated domestic venues.

Two Acquisitions Gave Kraken the Regulated Infrastructure to Pull This Off

The launch is the product of a deliberate two-year build. Payward acquired NinjaTrader, a futures brokerage now operating as Kraken Derivatives US and registered with the CFTC as a Futures Commission Merchant, in May 2025. It then acquired Bitnomial in May 2026, picking up a full stack of CFTC licences covering exchange, clearinghouse and brokerage functions in a single deal valued at up to $550 million. Together, those two acquisitions gave Kraken the regulated infrastructure needed to list true perpetual contracts on a domestic venue rather than routing US customers offshore.

"US traders have been waiting for a regulated, domestic way to trade the product that defines global crypto derivatives markets. We're giving them that access alongside the spot and futures markets they already use on Kraken Pro."

— John Palmer, Global Head of Derivatives, Kraken

Co-CEO Arjun Sethi framed the launch around the unified experience, noting that spot, margin, futures and perpetuals now all live in the same account. Perpetual contracts share the same futures wallet as existing CME-listed products, so traders can manage both against a single pool of collateral without moving funds between separate accounts.

CFTC Cleared the Way for Perps in Late May, Then Went Further Last Friday

Kraken's launch sits inside a broader regulatory shift that has been moving quickly. On 29 May, the CFTC approved Kalshi's bitcoin perpetual contract as the first true regulated perpetual on a US exchange, while simultaneously issuing guidance allowing Coinbase Financial Markets to route US customers to perpetual futures listed on its Bermuda subsidiary. That created the regulatory framework Kraken needed to proceed.

The agency then moved again on Friday, issuing a no-action letter allowing regulated exchanges to convert perp-style futures contracts into true perpetuals by removing expiration dates, subject to customer protection conditions including notifying holders of open positions and giving them a chance to exit. That letter expires at the end of June, suggesting the CFTC may follow up with more permanent rulemaking before then.

Assets Available at Launch
  • Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), Solana (SOL), XRP
  • Cardano (ADA), Chainlink (LINK), Dogecoin (DOGE), Litecoin (LTC), Avalanche (AVAX)
  • Kraken plans to expand the range of contracts and collateral options over time

Hyperliquid and Offshore Venues Still Hold the Liquidity Advantage

The structural challenge for Kraken and any other regulated domestic venue is the liquidity depth that offshore platforms have built over years without the constraints of US oversight. Platforms like Hyperliquid have drawn professional traders precisely because of their deep markets and continuous access to leverage, while Kalshi drew more than $1 billion in trading volume within a week of launching perps earlier this month. Kraken's head of derivatives has suggested adoption may follow the trajectory of spot bitcoin ETFs, with sophisticated traders coming first before institutional advisers and asset managers complete their compliance reviews and follow. For a broader look at how crypto ETFs opened the door for institutional capital, see our crypto ETFs guide.

Whether regulated US perps can compete meaningfully with offshore volumes remains to be seen, but the regulatory plumbing is now in place, and several major exchanges are moving quickly to use it.

Disclaimer: Nakamoto Daily provides information for educational and entertainment purposes only. Nothing published here constitutes financial, investment, or trading advice. Readers should conduct their own research and consult a qualified financial adviser before making any investment decisions.