Overview
- Kalshi launched CFTC‑reviewed perpetual contracts starting with a BTCPERP that debuted on May 29, and the products saw rapid volume that exceeded $100 million in 24 hours and topped $1 billion within a week.
- The CFTC has so far treated Kalshi’s perps as futures and is vetting new listings case by case, opening a regulatory on‑ramp that could bring large offshore perpetual trading into U.S. venues.
- Critics including CME CEO Terry Duffy and derivatives veteran John Lothian say funding‑rate mechanics and up to 50x leverage make the contracts resemble swaps and raise risks of price manipulation and fast retail losses.
- Kalshi and supporters counter that the contracts trade on an exchange, are centrally cleared, and use continuous funding calculations to limit manipulation, while U.S. firms such as Kraken have announced parallel plans to list CFTC‑regulated perps.
- The key questions now are whether the CFTC will reaffirm the futures label, impose leverage or margin limits, and how exchanges and clearinghouses will scale 24/7 surveillance and margining to protect retail traders and market stability.