Overview
- Kraken said in a May 29 announcement it plans to launch CFTC‑regulated perpetual futures for eligible U.S. customers within roughly 30 days, subject to final operational steps.
- The contracts will be listed on Bitnomial Exchange and cleared by NinjaTrader Clearing, operating as Kraken Derivatives US, and will trade on Kraken Pro alongside spot and dated futures.
- Kraken expects nine initial assets — BTC, ETH, SOL, XRP, ADA, LINK, DOGE, LTC and AVAX — and said the products will use continuous pricing with an eight‑hour funding rate.
- Kalshi has already listed U.S. perpetuals, posting rapid volume that topped $1 billion in the first week, and the launch has prompted public warnings from CME CEO Terry Duffy about high leverage and retail risk.
- A legal and policy debate is now central: some market veterans say perps resemble swaps because of ongoing funding payments while exchanges argue they function as exchange‑traded, centrally cleared futures, and that classification will shape access, protections and supervisory needs.